The Mage Of Eternal Darkness
by Kraziee Gal
Summary: The Story of the evil Mage seeking revenge on Zidane and Vivi has now been updated! It's almost finished! Just 2 more chapters to go....please read and review! ^_^
1. A New Threat To Gaia

This is my first chapter 2 my Action Adventure/Romance series. I don't own any of the characters (Except the evil black mage, Zeon) as they all b long 2 Squaresoft. Rated PG-13 for some bad language and a few lime scenes in the later chapters. The couples in this story are Vivi/Eiko (the main couple and vital to the story!) and Zidane/Dagger . Also a few hints of Steiner/Beatrix.   
N e way, e nuff said………Enjoy! ^_^ (Please forgive crappy title, I couldn't think of anything else!)  
  
  
The Mage Of Eternal Darkness  
  
By Kawaii Vivi  
  
CHAPTER 1: Evilness lurks in the Shadows  
  
It was a dark and stormy night near the Iifa Tree. Nowdays, it always seems to be like that over that certain part, after what had happened when Kuja tried to end all Life on Gaia. All the roots of the tree were now settled back to how they were before the whole thing started, but it still wreaks with the holy power of souls from others. It's said that Kuja's now good spirit still lives around here.   
But that good spirit was soon to be killed as a Dark shadow was approaching the tree. He walked at a slow pace, in no kind of hurry to get to his destination. Soon, a dark light shone on the figure. It was soon recognised to be a Black Mage, only this one seemed a little bit different from the others. He had an evil look about him, as his eyes were not the normal amber colour mages eyes were, as they were a fiery red colour. He also held a spiked topped mages staff, which very much looked liked an old mace that knights used in battle, and a very long black cape dragging behind him.  
He stopped as soon as he approached the tree, and looked up at it. He held up his staff when a huge crack of thunder could be heard, and he let out an evil laugh.  
"……Don't you worry master…..I'll will soon release you from the other dimension……and take your revenge on your enemies that trapped you there in the first place……so there's no need to fear……..I'll make light work of Vivi Ornitier and Zidane Tribal and make them die a slow and painful death for what they've done to you………MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"  
  
R&R please!! It's a bit crappy at the moment, but give it time, I promise it'll get a lot better! Sorry for it being so short!  



	2. Their Honeymoon Cut Short

Sorry the last chapter was so short….. I'll try to make the future ones longer!  
N e way, here's Chapter 2 of The Mage Of Eternal Darkness (this has a lime scene between Eiko and Vivi in it… just a reminder that Vivi is 19 and Eiko is 16 and they got married about 4 weeks from now. If you want to read about the wedding, read 'And The Wedding Bells Shall Ring' ) Enjoy!  
  
  
CHAPTER 2: Their Honeymoon Cut Short  
  
  
It was a warm summer morning in the city of Bermecia (Now rebuilt, by the way). In the new Inn that was built, sunlight came pouring through a particular window. This startled the mage sleeping inside the room. Vivi let out a small yawn as he slowly opened his eyes. This was the start of the fourth week of his around the world honeymoon. He and his wife, Eiko had travelled around most of the world aboard the Blue Narciss boat, using it as a cruise ship. When they came across a town, they stayed there for a few days, then travel on.   
He looked around and smiled at his sleeping wife. He still couldn't get over the fact that he was married to her. He considered himself to be the luckiest mage in the world to have someone like her. He gently stroked a few strands of Eiko's long blue hair out of her face and wrapped his arms around her waist as he snuggled his face into her neck. This woke her up, but she didn't mind, she loved Vivi doing that. She turned around to face him and gave him a loving smile.  
"I'm sorry, my sweet angel……did I wake you?" Vivi asked her softly, as he tightened his embrace. Eiko just sighed happily, and simply said  
" No, you didn't wake me…" and she looked deep into his amber eyes. His eyes, one of the many reasons she fell in love with him about. She then gently put her lips to his in a kiss. He sighed happily as he tightened his embrace around her waist, deepening the kiss. She slowly rubbed his back with one hand, and played with his hair with the other. She sighed at the feeling of her bare chest against his. It was a feeling that she would have a very hard time describing, as it felt so wonderful. Vivi wrapped the blanket tighter around them, making their embrace much warmer and more loving. After a few long minutes, they slowly broke apart, gazing lovingly into each others eyes.  
"Woah…." Vivi said, trying to catch his breath back.  
" Vivi…..sweetheart……there's something I've gotta tell you. I should've told you a while ago, but now I think is more of an appropriate time now we are married……" She took her hands in his and gave Vivi a smile….. "Vivi…..I'm….."  
She couldn't finish what she had to say as there was a loud knock on their room door.  
"Tell me a bit later sweetie." Vivi said as he slipped on a pair of pants and answered the door. A Bermecian messenger was at the door.  
"Is this the room of Vivi and Eiko Orintier?" he asked.  
"Yes…..this is….I'm Vivi……" Vivi replied. The messenger handed him a piece of paper.  
" We got a radio transmission from Alexandria Castle. It said it wanted us to give you this message…..so we wrote it down on this……"  
" Oh, OK thanks…." He said as he shut the door. He then opened up the piece of paper, which said…..  
  
  
Vivi and Eiko, You've got to get here to Alexandria Castle right away.  
We have been receiving messages of strange sightings around the Iifa  
Tree, and we think that this could lead to an attack by an old enemy or an  
Evil force of somekind, as of all that with Kuja and Memoria being there. I cannot apologise enough for disturbing you two in the middle of your Honeymoon, but it's a really important matter, and we think we are going to need your help. We will repay you for this…..but please help…. Get to Alexandria Castle as soon as you receive this message. We cannot thank you guys enough.  
  
Sincerely, Queen Garnet and King Zidane Tribal.  
  
  
Vivi walked over to the wardrobe and started to get dressed.  
" Vivi, what's going on?" Eiko asked as she watched Vivi getting ready in a hurry. He handed Eiko the letter and she read it. She to got up and started to get dressed.  
" Oh Vivi….why in the middle of our Honeymoon?"  
"I know it's a pain in the ass, but we will pick up where we left off when it's all over. You never know if it might be a false alarm, I hope so….." Vivi said as he gave Eiko a hug.  
"Oh, before we go….what was it you wanted to tell me?" he asked. Eiko just shook her head. She thought now might not be a good time.  
"I'll tell you after this is all over. Let's go!" she said, and after a brief kiss, they both gathered their stuff, and headed back to the Blue Narciss, ready to get over to Alexandria castle.  
  
  
Please R&R! Yay…I managed to make this chapter a bit longer!! But the question is…… SHOULD I CONTINUE? ( Dum Dum Dum)  
  
  



	3. An Encounter With A Mage

Third chapter of the Mage Of Eternal Darkness is now up! Enjoy!! ^_^  
  
  
CAHPTER 3: An Encounter With a Mage  
  
It was a bit of a pain to reach Alexandria. There was no river leading up to there, and the harbour was closed due to repairs. Vivi and Eiko's only hope was to go to Lindblum and borrow an airship of Regent Cid. So they set their course to head to Lindblum right away.  
On board the Blue Narciss boat, Vivi was steering, and Eiko was looking out over the side. She was wondering what all this fuss was about. It must have been pretty important to interrupt their honeymoon! She was also thinking about telling Vivi what she was going to tell him earlier, but if she told him, he might not let her go on this trip, and she does want to go if it's to help the people of Gaia. She sighed and looked out over the side of the ship. She felt kind of queasy, but not in that sea sick sort of way.  
" Eiko, honey, are you alright? You look unwell." Vivi called to her as he steered the ship.  
" Yeah…..I'm alright……" she called back, but at that that moment, she threw up over the ship's side. Vivi heard her and stopped for a moment. He ran over to her and picked her up.  
"No, you're sick. You are gonna lie down for the rest of this trip." He paused for a moment to give her cheek a little kiss. " Don't worry angel, we are almost at Lindblum. You'll get over your sea sickness once we get on land." Eiko gave Vivi a smile and hugged him. She was amazed at Vivi for his endless caring nature.  
' If only you knew.' She thought as she hugged him. 'But I can't tell you now. Not just yet…. You won't let me go otherwise…..'  
Vivi smiled at her as he put her down on the bed in the cabin. He kissed her on the lips for a brief moment before heading back to steer the ship. Before he left the cabin, he turned around and said….  
" Honey, call me if you need anything……" they both exchanged a smile before Vivi quietly closed the cabin door and left. Eiko turned over on the bed and decided to sleep the rest of the journey away.  
An hour later, the boat reached Lindblum harbour. As Eiko was still asleep, Vivi carried her off the boat and gently woke her up in his arms. She slowly opened her eyes, and the first thing she noticed was a pair of shinning amber eyes starring right back at her. She loved to see his eyes when she woke up. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. A few seconds later, they pulled apart, and he put Eiko on the ground.  
"Hey, can we head to the item store for a moment?" Eiko asked Vivi. "You never know when we might need curative items and medicines on this trip."  
"Ok, my angel." He said, seeing her point, and they both set off to the shops.  
  
Meanwhile, in the weapon/item shop, the peace was broken as a black mage with dark red eyes appeared in the shop. The shop owner was reaching for his rifle gun underneath the counter, just for protection of thieves, or violent customers and trouble makers. He couldn't be too careful after what happened with the black mages attacking Lindblum, and this guy looked like the evil sort.  
" Hello my good man." The mage said as he walked up to the counter " I was wondering if you could help me out with something……" the owner stopped reaching for his gun, this mage sounded friendly.  
" Uh….yeah….what is it?" the owner asked.  
" I was wondering if you sold an item that I'm looking for…….." before he could finish, Vivi and Eiko walked into the shop. The shop owner looked over and smiled at the couple.  
" Hello Princess Eiko! Hello Vivi!" he called out to them (Hey, Eiko is going to rule Lindblum when Cid and Hilda are gone, and Vivi will too as he's married to Eiko!)  
'VIVI??!!?' the other mage thought in his head as he heard the owner call that name. He slowly turned around, his red fiery eyes glaring at Vivi.  
"Errr….hello." Vivi said as he walked up to the other mage. He could tell by the look in this mage's eyes that he was angry.  
" Sorry….did I do something wro….AAARRGHHH!!" Vivi cried out as the mage had just struck Vivi with the end of his mages staff. The blow had caught Vivi off guard, and he fell out of the shop window, breaking the glass as he fell through it.  
As Vivi was getting up, the mage walked outside to where he was, and struck him in the chest with the end of the staff again, sending Vivi to the ground again.  
"VIVI!!!" Eiko called out.  
"I knew that guy meant trouble!" the owner said as he drew out his rifle.  
"FLARE!!!" Vivi yelled as he cast the powerful non elemental spell on the mage.  
"Ugghhh!" the mage said as the spell hit him. When the attack was over, he laughed.  
" You call that a full Flare attack?" he taunted. "This is how you do it, you puny little weakling…..FLARAGA!!!"  
"Flaraga?" Vivi said, a little surprised……until the spell hit him, that was when he literally screamed out in pain, as the spell was so powerful. It hit him even harder than a Meteor spell, and that was saying something!  
After it was all over, Vivi layed half dead at the evil mage's feet. He laughed evilly as he watched Vivi struggling to breathe.  
" Just what the master wanted…..I've almost killed Vivi Ornitier……now I'll finish you off with a Doomsday spell….." but before he could cast it, the mage felt a stinging pain in his shoulder from where he had been shot. The mage looked around and saw Eiko holding the store owner's rifle gun, with smoke coming out of it. Then she dropped it, and summoned Madeen. Whilst Madeen was charging up his attack, the store owner quickly moved Vivi out of the way. The mage was crying out in pain after Madeen had finished it's attack on the mage. He looked at Eiko with an evil glare…….  
'So…..that girl can summon Eidolons…..interesting…….' he thought to himself.  
" That's all for now my friends……but be warned…..you have not seen the last of me! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!" He laughed as he vanished in a puff of Black smoke.  
  
In the shop, Eiko had just finished casting the third Curaga spell on Vivi. He woke up, and looked up in Eiko's eyes.  
"Uhhhh….Eiko? Where is he?"  
"He's gone for now….." Eiko said with a smile.  
" I knew that guy was looking for trouble…..just by looking at him." The Shop owner said with a sigh.  
" I have a hunch that he's the one behind the strange sightings that the transmission said about, and he's the source of the this new problem……" Vivi said, a bit weakly due to the beating he took from the mage. Eiko kissed him on the lips, and said that he was brave to try and fight against that mage.  
" Eiko, my angel…..thank you….for saving my life……"  
" Hey, no need to thank me…..you've saved mine enough times!" she said with a smile.  
Vivi gave her a hug, but still thinking about that mage…..and what he said……you have not seen the last of me……so that must mean he's planning something….something that could threat all life on Gaia…….  
  
  
Should I continue? R&R please!! ^_^   



	4. Her Secret Revealed

Fourth chapter of The Mage Of Eternal Darkness!!!! Enjoy!! ^_^  
  
  
CHAPTER 4: Her Secret Revealed  
  
About an hour later after the encounter with the evil black mage, Vivi and Eiko bought the items they might need and headed off to Lindblum Grand Castle to borrow an airship from Regent Cid. After talking to the throne room guards to let them see the Regent, they went in to ask him the 'little favour'. When the walked in, the Regent greeted them with a warm smile.  
" Eiko, Vivi, what are you two doing back from your honeymoon so early?" he asked.  
" We got a transmission from Alexandria castle saying that because of weird sighting around the Iifa Tree, they may need our help, as it could prove a threat to Gaia." Vivi replied " We need to get to Alexandria quickly……so we need to ask you a small favour……"  
"…..we need to borrow an airship to get to Alexandria Castle…" Eiko added.  
" If it's to help my daughter and son in law, and all life on Gaia, I shall lend you an airship……in fact, I'll lend you the Hilda Garde 5!" he said with a smile.  
"Thank you father!" Eiko ran up to the throne and gave the regent a big hug.  
" By the way…. Did the transmission describe what kinds of weird sightings have been reported?" Cid asked.  
" No….." Vivi started, stopping for a minute to scratch his head " But we have a hunch on who's behind it…… a while ago, a black mage was in the Item/Weapon store in the Business District, and for some reason, he attacked me. He had strong spells, some I had never even heard of before! I was losing the battle, but Eiko saved me with Madeen, and he said 'You have not seen the last of me!' and disappeared. When he said that, we started to think he's the one behind the strange sightings….."  
" I see……" Cid said, scratching his chin " was he alone or with other black mages?"  
" He was alone…." Eiko replied " But he was really strong!"   
" This could prove to be quite a problem……." Cid said in deep thought "Anyway, I'll let you get to Alexandria castle, and I'll send some soldiers to scout around the Iifa Tree… follow me, I'll take you to the Hilda Garde 5…." And with that he lead the couple to the Airship Docks and let them board the brand new airship.  
On board the ship, Vivi was steering, and he noticed Eiko throwing up over the side. This made him think, as he knew she never gets airsick. He put the ship on auto pilot (Hey, this ship is very advanced!!) and ran over to her.  
" Eiko, is there something wrong?" He asked her. She didn't answer him.  
" Honey, please tell me what's making you feel unwell, and I'll try and make you feel better."  
" Vivi, I'm fine!! For god's sake, just leave me alone!!" she yelled. She then realised what he had just said. He was only trying to help her…..  
" Oh…..I'm sorry…" she said before she started to cry. Vivi was shocked by this action and he took her into his arms and softly started to rock her.  
" Honey, please tell me what's wrong." Vivi said softly as he kissed her fore head. Eiko looked up in Vivi's face with tearful eyes.  
" Vivi….I….I don't know how to say this right now…… I should have told you much earlier……." Vivi wiped the tears from Eiko's eyes.  
" Don't worry my angel, you can tell me anything."  
Eiko stopped crying for one minute and gave Vivi a small smile….  
" Vivi, I'm pregnant……"  
  
  
Sorry, must end it there!! Mwahahahaha!!!  
Didn't mean to make this chapter so short……. But I wanted to end it with those words…..Plus, I didn't know what else to write!! Next chapter coming up soon….. and more action is coming up, as I think I've added a wee bit too much romance in it so far!! Please R&R!! ( I want some more reviews people!! So PLLEEEAAASSEEEE review!!!)  



	5. Kidnapped!

Here is the Fifth chapter of the Mage Of Eternal Darkness!! Sorry for the slight delay, I've been busy doing school work!!  
There is more action coming up in this story, and it starts at this chapter!! Enjoy!! ^_^  
  
CHAPTER 5: Kidnapped!!  
  
"R…R…Really?" Vivi stuttered nervously "You're….You're pregnant?"  
" Yeah….." Eiko said, feeling tears in her eyes "We're gonna have a baby…" Eiko paused to wipe her eyes "I'm so sorry……I should've told you sooner…."  
Vivi just stood still. He didn't know what to say, he was completely shocked!! But deep down, he felt a never ending happiness.  
"H….How…. How long for?" He asked. This made Eiko cry a bit more……  
" About…..About three months……The night you proposed to me…." She then broke down and cried loudly. Vivi hugged her tightly.  
"Eiko, why are you so upset?" He asked her softly.  
" I….I thought you wouldn't want it……and you would tell me to get rid of it….." she admitted.  
"Why would you think such a thing?" he said as he brushed a lock of hair off her face. Eiko just looked up into his eyes with a puzzled look.   
" Eiko, you have given me what I've always wanted….. happiness, knowing that I am loved, a wife, and now……" he paused and stroked her stomach softly " a child to carry on our family's name for generations…." He paused for a moment as he let out a small tear of happiness "To tell you the truth, I really wanted us to have a child, and now you've given me one, I….I feel so happy!!" he then gave her the most loving hug any one could ever give. Eiko just sighed happily and squeezed him tightly, and cried tears of joy.  
"Well, if you're happy about this, than so am I……" she said with a big smile. Vivi looked into her eyes and wiped her tears away. He then lent down and kissed her neck softly.  
" I can't believe I'm gonna be a dad……" he whispered into her ear.  
" Well, you've gotta get used to waking up early in the morning and changing dirty diapers!" Eiko joked. Then, something caught her eye. It was a dark shadow hanging above the ship.  
" Hey, what's that?" she said as she pointed at the shadow. Vivi stared up at it.  
" I'm not sure…." He replied "But I don't like the look of it….." Before he could say anymore, the shadow settled onto the deck of the ship, and smoke covered everywhere. Vivi clinged onto Eiko tightly.  
" Eiko, stay close to me…" he whispered to her. When the smoke cleared, Vivi gasped. It was that Black Mage that defeated him in Lindblum. He looked up at Vivi and sneered.  
"Why are you following us?!?" Vivi yelled to him "What do you want?!?"  
The Mage said nothing.  
"ANSWER ME!!!" Vivi yelled again, and this time, he chucked a Flare spell at the Mage. The Mage laughed and covered himself with his cape. The magic attack simply bounced off of him, and into the air.  
Then he jumped into the air and launched a powerful Comet spell at Vivi, which knocked him down, as it was so powerful.  
"…….Revenge!" the Mage finally answered. He got ready to cast another Comet spell at Vivi, but then Eiko barged him and knocked him over. The spell was sent into the air, hitting a mountain.  
" Uggghhh…. You little fool…." The Mage growled at Eiko.  
" Get him while he's down Vivi!!" Eiko called to him, and she cast a Curaga spell on him.  
" Thanks! Take cover Eiko……DOOMSDAY!!!" Vivi yelled and he cast the powerful shadow attack. Before the spell had impact, Eiko had taken shelter somewhere at the bottom of the ship, but still felt the vibrations of the spell from the impact, even from where she was hiding.   
Back on the deck, the spell had knocked both of the Mages down.  
" Impressive……" the evil mage said with an evil grin as he slipped on an amulet…. " But this is how you cast a Doomsday spell!!!" and with that, he also cast Doomsday, but his attack had more of an impact than Vivi's, and after wards, the evil mage had regained most of his energy due to the power of the shadow element absorbing amulet. Vivi however, was unconscious. The dark Mage walked up to Vivi and picked up his body, and tossed it overboard. It landed in a pond somewhere.  
" One down, one to go…." He said with a evil laugh. "Now to find that girl…."  
Eiko had come out of her hiding place and saw what the mage had done to Vivi. She went into a crying fit, and the mage heard her. He slowly walked towards her. Eiko looked at him with angry eyes.  
" YOU KILLED MY HUSBAND, YOU BASTARD!!!" she screamed at him. The mage just laughed.  
" IT'S NOT FUCKING FUNNY!!!!" she screamed again, and ran up towards him to launch a powerful strike to the head. He just flew up into the air, and she ran right into the side of the ship, into barrels and boxes which came cascading down onto her.  
"AAARRRGGGHHHHH!!!" She screamed as she quickly curled herself up into a ball to try and soften the impact of the barrels and boxes. Luckily, no barrels hit her, and only some boxes landed onto her. The sound of shuffling feet made her uncurl herself and look out of the mess, and she saw the evil mage looking down at her, sniggering.  
" You stupid girl." He said slowly. "You can't even attack right without hurting yourself!" This made Eiko furious, and with all the strength she could muster, she picked up one of the barrels and tossed it at the mage. He only looked at it with red eyes, and it dissolved before her very eyes. Eiko's anger and sadness was all getting to her.  
" WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT WITH ME?!?" she yelled at him, tears in her eyes. He didn't answer, but the last thing she remembered was having a sleep spell cast onto her. Under the spell, she fell to the ground, sound asleep.  
" That was easy….Mwahahaha……" he laughed to himself as he picked Eiko up in his arms and flew off the ship, letting it crash right into the mountain site ahead.   
The sound of the impact made the town of Alexandria below it panic as chunks of rock fell down onto the town.  
In the pond below, Vivi just woke up, his back soaking wet as he fell onto it in the water. He took no notice of the falling rocks, but he noticed the evil mage looking down onto the town, laughing. He also saw Eiko fast asleep in the Mage's arms. The mage looked at Vivi, and gave him an evil glare before he flew off with Eiko.  
"EIKO!!!!" Vivi yelled, before a rock hit him on the head, and he fell face first into the water, unconscious.   
  
  
Next chapter coming up soon!!!  
The next one is going to have the whole gang in it, as I think it's about time they were in it!! Read and Review please!! ^_^  



	6. 

Next Chapter of The Mage Of Eternal Darkness is now up! More action is now going to be in this story from now on, but there is still romance, of course! Enjoy……here's chapter Six!  
  
CHAPTER 6: The Start Of A New Adventure  
  
  
After the shower of the rocks that had suddenly rained down on Alexandria, the place was covered in soldiers who were searching everywhere for injured citizens who might have been buried under the rubble. Steiner and Beatrix were checking the pond area, where they thought the accident had happened. Steiner then caught a glimpse of the ruins of the Hilda Garde 5 ship stuck in the mountain site.  
" Beatrix, that must have caused that rockfall!" he stated, pointing at it.  
" Yes, that is the only explanation….." Beatrix agreed. " We must inform the King and Queen right awa…..Oh my god!" she suddenly blurted out as she saw a figure face down in the water. Steiner gasped and immediately lifted the figure out of the water.  
" Oh my! Master Vivi!!!!" he yelled.  
" Vivi?!?" Beatrix said in a state of shock. " He needs help immediately!" and with that, they both carried Vivi into the castle.  
A couple of hours later, Vivi woke up and looked at the faces staring at him. The group were all here……Zidane, Dagger, Steiner, Freya, Amarant, and even Quina. But there was one missing…the most important person, his wife Eiko.  
" Vivi! You're awake!" Freya said to him. Vivi sat up and rubbed his eyes. He then started to cry silent tears.  
" Vivi, what's wrong?" Dagger said as she sat beside him on the bed.  
"Where's Eiko? Why didn't she bother to come here?" Amarant stated coldly. Vivi looked straight at Amarant with a death glare.  
" She did come with me……but…." He paused as he wiped his eyes…… " She was taken by a Black Mage we met in Lindblum!"  
" WHAT?!?" Zidane yelled in shock. "Where did that asshole take her?"  
" I don't know…..but, in her condition, I shouldn't have made her come!" Vivi sobbed.  
" Her condition?" Freya said with a puzzled look "Was she hurt or something?"  
" No…..she's…she's three months pregnant….. but she didn't tell me till we almost got here in the Hilda Garde 5….." This made the room gasp in shock.  
" Well, congratulations Master Vivi….." Steiner said " But why did she leave it this late to tell you? And why did that Mage take her?" Vivi took a deep breath, ready to tell the group what had happened.  
" Well, it started off that we needed a ship to get here as the harbour was under construction, so we went to Lindblum to borrow an airship from Cid…..when we went to buy some items in the shop, a Black Mage who was in there suddenly attacked me for some reason. He defeated me, with strong spells…some of which I've never even heard of before! Eiko saved me with Madeen, and then we set off to Alexandria. This was when she told me she was pregnant…..and she left it this late to tell me as she thought I wouldn't want it, and I would tell her to get an abortion. I comforted her, as I really want a child, and as soon as things were set straight, that Mage flew up and attacked me on the ship. He did defeat me for the second time, and he threw me overboard. He then kidnapped Eiko, and flew off the ship, letting it crash into the mountain. The last thing I remembered was when he flew north with her asleep in his arms…." He sobbed a bit more, and Dagger gave him a reassuring hug.  
" Aww…Poor Vivi….Quina go make Vivi warm soup to cheer up" Quina said and s/he walked out the door.   
"North….." Zidane said in deep thought. " He must have headed for either the Outer or Lost continent……."  
" I know! Let's go to the Black Mage Village!" Freya suddenly blurted out. " Since he's a black mage himself, the mages there might know where he hides out."  
" Good idea……" Zidane replied. He then walked over to the bed and looked at the distraught mage.  
" Vivi, don't worry. We are going to find this son of a bitch and kick the crap outta him for this! I'm sure Eiko and your kid are going to be fine….." Vivi looked up at Zidane with a small smile.  
" Thanks……thank you Zidane…" He then got up off the bed and clenched his fists.  
" When I next meet this guy, he's gonna be real sorry he messed with me!" he snarled. Zidane smiled at him and then turned to Steiner.  
" Make sure the Red Rose is ready for flight in ten minutes….. and our destination is Black Mage Village on the Outer Continent!"  
" Yes, your majesty!" Steiner said and he hurried out the door. The others started to leave the room and head for the new royal Airship dock. Half way there, Quina caught up with the group.  
" Vivi, here nice warm soup!" s/he said with a smile as it handed Vivi a cup with soup in it. Vivi smiled.  
"Thanks Quina….." he said as he drank a small sip. " Coming with us?"  
" Yes, to try new food!" Quina yelled as s/he darted down the corridor.  
When the group got there, they all boarded the Red Rose. Beatrix grabbed Steiner's hand as he was about to board…..  
" Steiner….. promise me you'll be careful….."  
" Beatrix, I'll be fine……I shall return to you!" He kissed her hand and smiled at her. " Take care of the kingdom whilst we are gone!"  
" I will." She said as he let go of his hand, and he boarded the ship.  
It slowly lifted off the ground, heading to the Outer Continent, and a new adventure……  
  
  
Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but I've been busy, doing school work and getting 100% completion on Final Fantasy 9 ( I defeated Ozma today! Yay!!! ^_^). Next chapter up soon, and for the love of God, please read and review!!!  
  
  



	7. Tragety At The Black Mage Village

I am REAL sorry for the delay, but being the clumsy bitch that I am I fractured my ankle, so it's in a cast and I've been walking on crutches!! ( God, I hate em…….) Plus, my mate had influenced me 2 take a break from writing this, and write something else! ( That was 'A Night To Remember' That was b 4 I hurt my ankle!). N e way, here's the next chapter! ( A special thanks to Alria who's actually bothering to read and review this thing! If no one else is gonna read my story, then I'll finish it 4 her cause she's wasting her time reading and reviewing my fanfic, add to the fact I think she kicks ass!)  
  
  
CHAPTER 6: Tragety at the Black Mage Village  
  
  
The Red Rose had almost reached the Black Mage Village. Everyone knew that if there were some answers on this evil mage to be found, they'd find them here.  
It had been a long and boring flight. No one had talked that much, as they were all deep in thought, especially Vivi. Many things were going on in his head at the moment. He could not stop thinking about Eiko and what that Mage might do to her, or the little baby inside her. Maybe there was something he could have done, or maybe he could have protected her much better than he had done? He cried silent tears just thinking about this. He balled his fists up, thinking about that Mage. What does he want? Why did he take Eiko? Maybe it was revenge for someone, or perhaps just spite? He didn't know, but he soon will when he reaches the village.  
Just then, he heard Dagger yell…" Oh dear God!!" when she looked over the ship's side. Vivi ran over to see what was the matter, and gasped.  
The forest where the mages lived was burnt to a crisp. All that was left where dead burnt trees, dead monsters, singed tree stumps, and now, you could see the Village clearly from above, or what was left of it.  
" Prepare to land the ship immediately!!" Zidane called to the pilot.  
" At once, your majesty!" she called and landed the Red Rose as close to the forest as she could.  
A while later, the gang were off the ship, and looking at the remains of the Black Mage Village. All the buildings were burnt, and everywhere was a right mess. Many Black Mages were lying on the floor, dead or unconscious, no one could really tell at first glance. Just then, one Black Mage coughed and slowly started to get up.  
" Mr 288!" Vivi called and ran over to him to help him up.  
" Vivi?" he said weakly. Everyone ran over to the Mage.  
" What happened here?" Dagger asked.  
" He…..he burned our village down, hoping to find someone……." He whispered.  
" Who? Who did this?!?" Vivi asked, a hint of pure anger in his voice.  
" Z…..Zeon…." he replied. He coughed for a moment and continued " Zeon burned our Village and killed nearly everyone in it……."  
" Zeon?" Zidane said with a questioning tone.  
" Zeon is an evil black mage…….." before he could continue, Vivi stood up.  
" Zeon! He's the bastard who kidnapped Eiko!!!!" he yelled, in a fit of anger, frustration, and sadness. Freya looked at him.  
" Vivi, we are all sad that Eiko was kidnapped, but please, listen to what Mr 288 has to say about this Mage…….." Vivi calmed down a little bit.  
" O…Okay…sorry you guys….. my emotions just got to me….." he sat down again. Mr 288 smiled at him weakly.  
" That's Okay Vivi….. it must be awful for you……." He coughed. " Anyway, as I was saying, Zeon is an evil Black mage who once served an evil demon by carrying out his plans for him, wreaking havoc on the people of Gaia. People always thought he was one of Kuja's Black Mages, when really he was working for that evil being, until one day, two strong fighters fought him and sealed the demon in another dimension. Zeon's been seeking for revenge for his master on the two fighters ever since……." He coughed loudly as he finished his story. Other coughing and choking noises could also be heard around the group.  
" Hey!" Zidane said as he turned around and saw other Black Mages start to get up. Everyone went over to help them, and for the next few hours, they helped all the Villagers back to health, and buried the ones who unfortunately passed away during the fire.  
Later that night, when everyone was asleep in the Red Rose, Vivi went back to the Village. He found Mr 288 standing in the graveyard, looking at the number of tombstones, which had dramatically increased after the fire. Vivi walked up to him.  
" I'm glad to see that you're feeling better……" he said. Mr 288 smiled at him.  
" Yes, I want to thank you all for the medicine…… Without it, I probably wouldn't be standing here talking to you….." Vivi nodded and looked at the graves with Mr 288 for a while, standing in silence.  
"….Why do you think Zeon attacked the Village, his own kind?" Vivi asked, breaking the silence.  
" Because one of those fighters was a Black Mage….." Mr 288 said quietly. " He was probably hoping he would find him here, and then destroy him. You see, he probably has more strength than his master had……" Vivi stood still for a few moments, getting ready to ask the next question.  
" W….who was his master?" this made the older Mage freeze. He thought that if he told the truth, the young Mage could never forgive himself. But he told him anyway…..  
" His name was….. Ozma…." He said very quietly.  
" But me and Zidane defeated Ozma….." Vivi answered back. Then, his mind clicked. He froze with terror and looked up at Mr 288.  
"Y…… you mean…..h….he burned down this village to…to find…….." he stammered.  
" Yes." Mr 288 said, a slight hint of fear in his voice. " To seek and destroy….. you…. And Zidane….."  
  
  
Next chapter up soon! Once again, I'm real sorry for the delay! I'll try and update more often, but It'll be hard right now, as my ankle really hurts, and it takes me an hour just to walk to the computer! ( God…..I HATE crutches….. x_x ) Please read and review! PLEASE!!!!!!!!   



	8. Trapped

I'm really gonna try to update as much as I can to finish this story…… but we still gotta long way to go yet! N e way, here's the eighth chapter of The Mage Of Eternal Darkness! Enjoy!  
  
CHAPTER 8: Trapped  
  
  
Eiko slowly opened her eyes from the long sleep she had. As soon as she caught a glimpse of what was around her, she was wide awake.  
She was in a dark and dusty cell. It was kind of small, with only an old, rusty sink, a window with bars across it, and a bed chained to the wall, with only one tattered blanket on it. She looked down and noticed she was sleeping in a wad of old hay in there. She immediately got up and sat on the bed, with was as hard as a board.  
She slowly started to cry. Why was this happening to her? Why did the Mage kidnap her? What does he want with her? She didn't know, but she was sure something bad was going to happen. And Vivi…..   
She remembered that the Mage threw him overboard the ship when he defeated him….. seeing as Vivi was unconscious at the time, he must have been either killed, or injured in a very bad way. She didn't like thinking about it, so she closed her eyes and lied down on the bed, silently crying herself back to sleep while it was peaceful.   
But it was soon to be disturbed as she heard eerie, echoing footsteps approaching her cell. She backed to the wall as far as he could, afraid. Afraid of what he might do to her……..  
The cell door clicked and the door creaked open, to reveal the dark, capped figure of Zeon standing in the doorway. He looked at Eiko from under the brim of his tattered Mage's hat, his eyes burning like red hot coals.  
" Huh…… you're finally awake……" he said in a low, slow voice.  
Eiko trembled. She hadn't been so frightened in all her life.  
" W…..what do you want with me?" she stammered, the fear in her voice showing dramatically.  
Zeon sighed as he walked towards her slowly, his armoured boots clanking against the cold stone floor loudly in the hollow cell, making echoing sounds of his advancing footsteps.  
" Now now, there's no need to be afraid……" he said, obviously tracing the fear in her voice. She got off the bed and stood up when he got to her, ready to defend himself if he was going to strike her. He suddenly grabbed her by the hair brutally, and forced her to sit back down again. She quietly yelped in pain, and sat back down. He gave her an evil grin……..  
" Sit down, there's a good child….." he said quietly. Eiko was now trembling more than ever, drops of tears and sweat dripping down from her face.  
" Please……please tell me…… what do you want with me?" she pleaded. The mage coughed, then looked at her in the eyes with a look of pure hatred…..  
" To lure them here……" he replied slowly.  
" T….th…them?" she stammered.  
" Zidane Tribal…….. and Vivi Ornitier……." He hissed. " They made my master suffer, now I'm going to take revenge for him, by slowly torturing those two imberciles to death….. whilst all in a while, finding a way of bringing my master back from the other dimension……" he paused as he turned his back to her.  
" I couldn't find either Zidane or Vivi, even after searching in every town, and now, after burning Black Mage Village. That's why I kidnapped you…..so they would look for me….. it saves the bother of me going out to search for them!" he laughed evilly.  
' So that's why you attacked Vivi in Lindblum…..' she thought to herself. Her thoughts finally snapped back to now as Zeon looked at her coldly.  
" You are Vivi's wife……. Are you not?" he asked slowly, still using that dark tone in his voice. Eiko didn't answer him. She thought that if he knew the truth, he would do something horrible to her…… but, nothing he would do to her could add up to the pain that he gave to Vivi……  
" Well?!?" he snarled and he quickly struck her across the face, sending her sprawling across the floor. She touched her lip, and pulled her hand away, noticing the blood on her fingers. Before she said anything, he struck her again, this time across her back, causing her to scream out in pain. She thought she's better answer, or he'd probably kill her……  
" …..yes….." she said weakly. This caused Zeon to laugh slowly and evilly.  
" Excellent……. Now I can torture Vivi even more……" he cackled. He then looked back at Eiko, and picked her up by the hair, and pushed her onto the bed. Without saying anything else, he slowly started to walk out of the cell, his feet still sounding on the stone floor. He stopped in the cell's doorway, and said in a cold voice…….  
" Just be thankful that I didn't kill you……" and then he walked out, locking the door behind him. Eiko then let out loud sobs into the tatty pillow on the bed. Why did all this have to happen? Well, at least she knew that Vivi was still alive. But the way things are at the moment, she knew that wouldn't last much longer……  
" Oh Vivi……." She sobbed quietly. " Where ever you are, please, please be careful……."  
  
  
Next part up soon! Mwahahahaha!!! Please read and review!!!   



	9. Thoughts and Confrontations

Woo Hoo!! I've updated chapters more often, and I'm gonna try and keep it that way from now on….. it depends on my school work, or if I have to go to hospital due to my busted ankle!  
N e way, here's chapter 9! ( You'll notice that a couple of Zeon's attacks are from FF7 and FF8. I couldn't think of better names!!)  
  
CHAPTER 9: Thoughts and Confrontations  
  
( By the way, we are now back at the Village now people! ^_^)  
  
" He's…… been trying to get me…….. all this time?" Vivi said, shocked by what he had just heard. Mr 288 nodded.  
" Yes….you and Zidane….. he'll probably destroy Lindblum and Alexandria to get Zidane out of the way……"  
" He burned this Village down to get to me, didn't he?" Vivi said with a hint of sorrow in his voice. Mr 288 didn't say anything, but he slowly nodded his head. Vivi felt terrible….. the Mages in this village had suffered because of him! They paid the price for something that Vivi did with Zidane……. Trapping Ozma in the other dimension, and filling Zeon with an uncontrollable rage. He really didn't know what to say right now, but all he knew was that he was responsible for the destruction of the Black Mage Village, and deep down, he would never forgive himself. He thought that probably all the surviving Mages would never forgive him either, including Mr 288. They might all hold a grudge against him from this day forward……..  
" I gotta go……" he finally said before rushing out of the village. Mr 288 looked at him as he ran, and sighed.  
'Poor little child…..' he thought to himself 'He's probably thinking that we all hate him because Zeon burned down the village to find him. It's not his fault….. sealing Ozma in the other dimension was for the good of all life on Gaia….. and he wasn't to know that this was going to happen shortly afterwards. I just hope that Zeon doesn't find that staff, or Ozma will be released and all life would be threatened……  
Meanwhile, Vivi had just walked out the huge forest and was standing before the Red Rose. So many thoughts and feelings were going through his head at the moment…..  
' He wants to destroy me and Zidane for defeating Ozma and sealing him in the other dimension…. That explains why he attacked me in Lindblum and followed me and Eiko in the airship……..' he silently cries a few tears….. ' Eiko…..my love….. where are you? What are you doing right now? What's he done to you?' he wiped his eyes and looked up at the bright stars in the sky. He then sighed as he clenched his fist into a tight ball……  
' That's why Zeon kidnapped Eiko….. to slowly torture me….. and to probably lure me and Zidane to him. I don't care if it's all some kind of trap…… I can't live without her….. so even if it means me endangering my life, I will protect her and my child inside her with all my strength I can muster….' He then let out a cry of anger into the nights sky……  
" ZEON!!! YOU ARE GOING TO BE SO SORRY YOU MESSED WITH ME!! YOU HEAR ME??!!??"  
" Oh? Is that right?" said a slow voice from behind him. Vivi froze. He slowly turned around, and no one other than Zeon himself was standing before him. He smirked as he looked at the terrified Mage.  
" What do you plan to do to me Vivi? You know I am much stronger than you, or did you forget the past defeats in Lindblum and on the airship?"  
" What have you done with Eiko?!? Where is she?!?" Vivi said in a firm tone, forgetting his fears, and his feeling of anger rising.  
" In a safe place…." Was all Zeon said. He looked up at the night sky and laughed.  
" Hmmm…. What a perfect night for death and destruction…." He cackled. Vivi was getting more angry as he listened to the evil Mage.  
He was getting ready to settle things right here, right now…..  
" This is it Zeon! I'm gonna take you out! Right here, right now! I'm now ready as I'll ever be…." Vivi yelled. Zeon just chuckled to himself.  
" You are more dim witted than I thought…… well, since the night is perfect for disposing weedy little insects like you, I gladly accept your challenge……" and at that, he quickly lunged at Vivi, but he just managed to dodge. He ran to the side as quick as he could and cast Flare on Zeon. It didn't make much of an Impact, but it did hit him.  
" Flareaga!!" Zeon yelled and launched the powerful spell at the young mage. Vivi lunged to the right as far as he could, just escaping the feeling of being burned badly.  
" Hmmmm….you are more prepared, I must admit…" Zeon said as he tapped the brim of his hat, fully revealing his red hot eyes…." But you are still no match for me!…..Shadow Flare!" he yelled and threw the spell at Vivi. As much as he tried to dodge the spell, it hit him, making full impact on him. He groaned and fell to the floor.  
The bright lights and sounds from the heat of the battle woke up Zidane in his and Dagger's cabin aboard the Red Rose.  
" What the…. Who would fight at this time of night?!?" he grumbled. He then turned to the window and saw Vivi and Zeon fighting.  
" VIVI!!" he yelled.  
" Uhhh…what's going on…?" Dagger moaned as she just had been awakened by his yell.  
" It's Vivi! He's fighting Zeon alone! He needs help!" and with that, he slipped on his usual pants and shirt, grabbed his Utima Weapon and ran out.  
" Zidane, wait!" Dagger called as she to got ready, took her weapon Whale Whisker and ran to join Zidane.  
Back outside, Vivi had just been struck with Meteor, which had sent him sprawling across the floor. Zeon, suprisingly weaker than before due to the damage that Vivi had given him, started to slowly walk up to him.  
" I was planning to prolong your suffering by killing Eiko, and then slowly torturing you bit by bit, but since you are so much bother, I'll destroy you right now!" He put his spiked topped staff right on Vivi's forehead, making him groan weakly.  
" Goodbye Ornitier! I'll see you in hell!" and rose the staff above his head, ready to slam it down on Vivi's head. Just then, Zidane rushed towards him and barged Zeon, knocking him over.  
" Offf!!!" he grunted as he hit the floor.  
" Curaga!" Dagger yelled and she cast it twice on Vivi, regaining his strength.   
" Thanks you guys!" Vivi said as he got up off the floor " I owe you one!"  
" No problem!" Zidane said as he ran over to him.  
" Are you Ok now?" Dagger asked.  
"Yeah….." Vivi replied. He then turned to Zeon and snarled at him.  
" Time to use a new move I've been working on!" he said as he rose his fist into the air….. "Firaga Punch!" he yelled as his risen fist started to form into a massive fireball, which he then punched directly into Zeon's chest, sending him sprawling again, and causing to groan in agonizing pain. After the pain started to fade, Zeon stood in front of the trio, still not to weakened, but his shirt was bloodstained across his chest.  
" Ornitier, you are really going to regret that….." he hissed. Coils of energy then started to form around his fists, his eyes glowing redder than ever before and gave an evil stare at the group.  
"…… APOCALYPSE!!" He yelled as he then blasted a huge attack at the group, knocking them all unconscious. He then decided to leave them there, to make their suffering last a little bit longer.  
" You did put up a better fight than before Ornitier….but still, you're not strong enough to beat me!" he then groaned from the sting across his chest where he was bleeding from a big gash…. " I'm going to leave you alive now…. To prolong you're suffering….. and to re match my master when I release him…… and with that, he dissapeared in a big puff of black smoke, leaving Zidane, Vivi and Dagger all on the floor, beaten.  
  
  
DUH DUH DUH!!!!  
Will Vivi forgive himself for the tragety that struck Black Mage Village?  
What was the mace that Mr 288 mentioned that would release Ozma from the other dimension?  
Will they ever defeat Zeon?   
Does anyone really care?  
Find out in the next chapter to The Mage Of Eternal Darkness!!!!!  
Coming soon!!   



	10. The Tale Of Lucifer's Staff

I am REAL sorry for the really long delay……… but I've been to hospital a few times (I can walk now! Yay ^__^ ) and I've been busy doing school work! I promise I'll try to update more often, but's been hard to lately ( I bet some people think I might've given up on this since it's been a while….. wellllll, all you people who are out there that think that, you are sorely mistaken! Again, thanks to Alria who's still faithful to me and continues reading each chapter! You rock!) N e way, on with Chapter 10!  
  
  
CHAPTER 10: The Tale Of Lucifer's Mace  
  
Vivi slowly opened his eyes, noticing that it was early morning as the sun was almost risen. He let out a painful groan, as his limbs ached from the battle with Zeon that he had last night. He picked himself up off the floor and thought. Even with the combined efforts of himself, Zidane and Dagger, they still wasn't strong enough to take Zeon down. And Eiko….. he felt like he hadn't seen her for years. He let out a small tear from the corner of his eye in remembrance of what happened on the day Zeon took Eiko away from him. He wondered how she was doing, and how his child was doing inside her. How could he let Zeon take her away? It was like him tearing out his heart and tossing it away……   
The sound of the Red Rose's door opening clicked his mind back to reality as he turned and noticed Freya walking outside. She let out a huge yawn then noticed Vivi, and Zidane and Dagger lying on the ground, still knocked out from the battle last night. She gasped and ran towards them.  
" God Vivi! What happened?" she asked.  
" Long story Freya……" Vivi replied, whilst raking a lock of thick black hair out of his face.   
" Did…..Did Zeon do this?"  
" Yeah…… he came by last night when you guys were asleep…… I was fighting him one on one, and was losing, until Zidane and Dagger came by to help me. But even with all three of us against him, we still wasn't able to defeat him….. but I think it was close….."   
" Let's put these two onto the ship to rest." Freya suggested "But we won't be able to take off till they wake up though….."  
" That's OK, I want to talk to someone before we leave anyway." Vivi said with a small smile. He then turned and walked back to the Black Mage Village. The remaining villagers were cleaning up the mess, and started work on re building the houses and shops.  
' I still can't believe he did this….. just to get to me……. I feel terrible….' He thought as everyone was smiling at him as he walked by. Vivi smiled back and headed towards the cementry, where Mr 288 usually was. He did find him there, still staring out at the new graves that were now there due to the horrible destruction of the town. Mr 288 saw Vivi and smiled warmly at him.  
" Hello Vivi" he said.  
" Hi…. Sorry for storming off yesterday….. I was kinda messed up, and I still am really…." Vivi admitted.  
" That's Ok….." the older Mage replied, looking at Vivi and noticing the sadness in his eyes. Mr 288 sighed and placed a hand on his back.  
" Look, you are not responsible for our village being burned. I know Zeon was after you, but how was you to know he'd do this? You and Zidane had to seal Ozma in the other dimension, or else he'd be at large now, causing havoc on Gaia…… you saved everyone on the planet by putting him away……" he said with a hint of emotion in his voice. Vivi turned to face him, and smiled. Mr 288 then gave Vivi a stern stare.  
" Vivi…there's something I need to tell you….. Zeon plans to release Ozma from the other dimension, and he knows how to do it……" Vivi's eyes widened when he heard that.  
" What?!?" he yelled. The older Mage shushed him.  
" Long, long ago, an evil mage, much more wicked and cruel than Zeon, brought back his master from the dead using the powers from this evil powered staff…. So evil, it's known as Lucifer's staff."  
"….yeah….." Vivi said, paying full attention to Mr 288.  
" It's so powerful, it can resurrect evil masters and demons back from the dead….. so it should have no problem bringing them back from another dimension."  
"So…. Zeon's trying to find this staff, am I right?" Vivi asked. Mr 288 nodded.  
"Yes…. And if he does find it, he needs to go to the place Ozma was sealed, chant a spell, and…….the staff's power will release him….."  
" No! We can't let that happen!" Vivi yelled. " Where is this 'Lucifer's Staff'?" he asked.  
"In a cave on the west coast near Oeilvert……. Known as 'The Endless Cave Of Evil'" The elder Mage replied. " The Staff is right at the back of the cave, but…."  
"Thanks Mr 288! I gotta go now! Zeon's probably heading there right now!" and he turned and ran out of the cementry.  
" Vivi! Wait!" Mr 288 yelled, but Vivi was already gone. He gave a long sigh.  
' Vivi…..Only the hands of those who are evil to the heart can touch the Staff, or else the person who does touch it turns just as evil as the Staff's energy……'  
  
To Be Continued!!!!! Mwahahahaha!!!  



	11. The Race For The Staff Begins

I've updated quicker! Yay! N e way, here's the next chapter!  
  
  
CHAPTER 11: The Race For The Staff Begins  
  
Zeon gave a massive smirk as he had watched Mr 288's and Vivi's conversation in a portal on the wall in his hideout.  
" Thank you 288…… you have just given me the location of the staff. Now, I can go find it in that cave before those fools do, and very soon, my master will be released…. Oh this is to good to be true…. Now I can go get the staff and kill them all at the same time!" he then turned his head to look up at the ceiling.  
" The time is nigh master……. The time for you to be brought back to Gaia…… but I can assure you, before I release you, Vivi Ornitier and Zidane Tribal will be no more!!!" he then let out a long and evil laugh which seemed to echo all through the hideout…….As Eiko could hear it from her cell. At the moment, things were gradually getting worse for her. She was stuck in a cramped cell, with only a bed and sink in it, with no decent food, no friends to talk to, and……no Vivi. It felt like she hasn't seen him for years. She cries for him to be near her, to hold her, and to look after her and their baby. She sighed as she knelt down in the corner of the cell, clutching her stomach.  
" Vivi….my love……Where are you?…..Please come to me soon….I need you….." she whispered, a tear falling from her eye and onto the hard cold floor of the cell. Just then, her cell door swung open, revealing Zeon standing in the doorway. He sneered at her as he slowly walked towards her. He stopped when he was right next to her.  
" Well now, my child. Your stupid husband has led me to the location of the Lucifer's staff….. so now I can release my master…." He stopped for a second and let out a small, evil laugh as he reached his hand out and grabbed Eiko by her hair, causing her to yelp out in pain.  
" Don't think I'll leave you here……. You are coming with me, my precious bait….." and he then cast a sleep spell on her, which had her out like a light. He picked her up in his arms and flew out of the hideout, heading for the Endless Cave Of Evil.  
  
  
Meanwhile, the Red Rose has almost reached it's destination, The Endless Cave Of Evil. Vivi was walking up and down the ship's deck nervously. Zidane watched him for a while before he got up and decided to talk to him. He approached the young Mage and gave him a slap on the back.  
"Hey Vivi, what's wrong?" he asked.  
" I got a gut feeling that he knows that staff is here….." Vivi said quietly. "It wouldn't surprise me if we got to the end of the cave and he was standing there, holding the staff….."  
" Well, the only way well know for sure is if we go in!" Zidane said with a smile. " Try and think positive, Ok?"  
" Well, I am being a bit pessimistic….." Vivi admitted. " You're right Zidane. I'll try to think more positive." He said with a small smile.  
" That's the spirit!" Zidane said with a laugh and headed back to Dagger, who looked bit unsure of things. Zidane wrapped his arms around her and was kissing the hollow of her neck before he asked her what was the matter.  
" I've got a bad feeling about that staff….." she replied. " What if it's got some kind of curse on it?" Zidane placed a small kiss on her cheek, and gave her a serious look.  
" Dagger, even if it has got a curse on it, we still gotta get it outta the cave away form Zeon, otherwise he'll release Ozma and all hell will break loose." He sighed as he hugged her tighter. " I know you are scared, we all are, but it's for the good of all the people and living things on Gaia……cause if Ozma is released, they are all under serious threat…."  
" Yeah, you're right…." Dagger agreed. Zidane was just about to say something else when he heard the pilot yell out that they were at their destination.  
" Land the ship then!" Dagger called back.  
"Yes your highness!" the pilot replied and with that, landed the Red Rose right outside the cave.  
A little while later, everyone was off the ship (except the ship's crew members) and Zidane started to talk to them.  
"Ok everyone! I've just had a brief look inside the cave, and there are two paths, so we are going to split into two teams and try to reach the end before Zeon gets here."  
" But Zidane, there are only 7 of us……" Freya pointed out.  
"Damn!" Zidane cursed. He forgot they were one member short. "Well, there's only one way, a team of three and a team of four…… and I've decided the teams. I'll lead team 1, and Vivi will lead team 2. In my team, I'll have Dagger and…." He paused for a moment "Amarant. So Freya, Steiner and Quina will go with Vivi."  
"Ok!" everyone said. They got into their teams and stood outside the cave.  
" Left of right path Vivi?" Zidane asked him.  
"We'll take the left path…." He said.  
"Ok then…Let's go!" and then they all proceeded into the cave.  
A minute later, the dark shadow of Zeon stood outside the cave. He looked down at the sleeping Eiko in his arms, then at the Red Rose ship, and laughed.  
"Well, the chase is on!" he said out loud. "I'll get that staff before they do master, so don't worry…." And with another evil laugh, he walked fearlessly into the cave…..  
  
  
DUH! DUH! DUH!  
  
Who will get to the end first?  
What exactly is Zeon planning to do in there?   
Will any of the group touch the staff?  
Find out in the next chapter of…..THE MAGE OF ETERNAL DARKNESS!! (Please read and review!! Thanks! ^_^)  



	12. Cave Perils

Once again, I have not updated sooner than I said I would……. It's not that I've been busy, but I've been too god damn lazy!  
In this chapter, I'm gonna keep changing the P.O.V's of the different groups ( Zidane's group and Vivi's group) as they venture through the cave, It's easier to do it that way! ( man, I'm getting to lazy for my own good…….) Well, nuff said…… on with chapter 12! ( This ones a bit longer than all the others……. And a certain bit is done in true Indiana Jones Style!!)  
  
CHAPTER 12: Cave Perils  
  
  
Vivi's group  
  
The group had just walked a way into the cave, with Vivi ahead of the others slightly. ( Remember, his group was himself, Freya, Steiner and Quina) They were all silent as they walked on, listening to the eerie sounds in the cave. Quina was the first to break the silence.  
" It to dark in here….." Quina said with a shaky voice, as if s/he was afraid.  
" Don't tell me you're afraid of the dark……" Vivi sighed, sounded a bit irritated.   
" No, Master Quale tell me….. dark places have no good munchies!"  
" Quina, stop thinking about food for one god damn minute and let's get to that staff before Zeon does!" Vivi snapped. He then looked up and saw the surprised and quite hurt look on Quina's face. He then gave a deep sigh.  
" Sorry Quina….. I'm just really worried about Eiko….. and what he might do next…." He shed a silent tear and leaned against the wall. However, he didn't notice that he leant on a small button on the wall.   
A loud noise could then be heard above them.  
" W….what's that?" Steiner stammered, drawing his sword out, just in case it was a monster. The noise got louder and louder……  
Freya squinted as she looked up at the ceiling, but her eyes soon widened as she noticed cracks in it.  
" MOVE!!!" She yelled as she dived out the way, closely followed by the others. The ceiling cracked open and a huge rock boulder fell, which rolled after them.  
" AAARRRGGGHHH!!!" They screamed as they started running away from the boulder, as fast as they could go.  
  
  
Zidane's group  
  
" Back off!!" Zidane yelled at the Shadow Dragon in front of him, his Ultima Weapon pointing right in the creature's face.  
" rrrrRRROOOAAARRR!!!" The dragon roared, so loud that it echoed all the way through the cave. It then drew it's head back, and fire began to form in it's mouth. Dagger and Amarant went back into the wall as far as they could, and noticed Zidane was still right in front of the Dragon.   
" Watch out!" Dagger yelled as she yanked Zidane back to the cave wall with her and Amarant, the flame breath attack barely missing him.  
" Whew…. Thanks!" he said as he got up again. He slashed at the dragon across it's chest, causing it to bleed very badly, and the dragon to stagger in pain.  
Amarant took this advantage to slash at the creature's throat with his claws, causing it to fall over, dead.  
" Woah…. That's the second dragon we've encountered in here…" Amarant stated.  
" Yes, we'd better watch our backs…." Dagger agreed. " This place is probably running alive with booby traps and monsters." Zidane walked over to her and hugged her.  
" Well, just stay close to me Dagger, and you'll be fine….." he then gave a short sigh. " I hope Vivi and the others are OK……"  
  
  
Vivi's group  
  
" Arrggghhh!" Vivi yelled as the gang was still running from the boulder, and it was getting closer to squashing them every second. The group then suddenly saw the last thing they wanted to see right now…… a llllooooooonnnnnnngggggg cliff drop!!  
" Argh! There's a drop ahead of us!" Freya wailed.  
" It nice knowing you guys!" Quina sobbed.  
Suddenly, Steiner looked up at the ceiling above the long drop.  
"It's not over yet!" he said as he sprinted ahead of the group (Well, slightly ahead) and he jumped…….. and clang on to a rock pillar hanging on the ceiling.  
" Hang on to these!" he yelled at the group. They all nodded nervously, especially Vivi (who was STILL afraid of heights, even after all these years!) and jumped onto them, clinging on as hard as they could. They all turned their head slightly and watched the boulder roll off the cliff, and to it's doom down below.  
" Is everyone OK?" Freya called back to everyone. Vivi shook nervously as he tried NOT to look down below him.  
" Y…y…yeah….I'm f…fine….." he stammered, from fright and from all the running. (They were all well tired…. Well, so would you be if you had to run from a huge boulder!)  
" Well, what shall we do now?" Steiner asked.  
" Ahh….. I losing grip!" Quina cried out ( probably from it's heavy bulk…. It's a wonder the pillar held s/he at all…….) and with all it's might, jumped back onto the cliff top, just about making it.  
" I think jumping back would be a good idea." Freya said, as she effortlessly jumped back onto the top of the ledge. Steiner followed, just about making it. Vivi was still clinging on with dear life on his pillar, with his eyes tight shut.  
" Let me guess, you're still afraid of heights?" Freya asked. Vivi quickly nodded his head, still not opening his eyes. Freya sighed and jumped to the pillar nearest to Vivi, which was right next to him.  
" Cling onto my back, I'll jump you across." She said. Vivi slowly opened his eyes and gave her a small smile.  
" Thanks Freya." He said.  
" Hey, that's alright." She replied " Now come on, we need to get to the staff as quick as we can." She slowly turned around on her pillar, and let Vivi take his time in climbing on her back. She then jumped back onto the ledge, and then all of them were safe.   
"….That boulder didn't fall till I leaned on the wall….. I must have triggered some kind of trap……" Vivi said glumly.  
" Hey, we are safe now Master Vivi, so now that doesn't really matter….." Steiner said " what matters is that we get to that staff before that scoundrel Zeon does!"  
" Yeah, you're right……" Vivi agreed.  
" But, what now?" Quina asked "We at dead end!"  
" We might have run past a passage when we was running away from the boulder….." Freya suggested and stepped back, unaware that she had set off another trap….. a small sound of gears whirring could be heard slightly beneath them.  
" Oh no…. I think I set off another trap!" Freya gulped.  
" Well, I'm ready for anythAAARRRGGGHHHHH!!!" Steiner yelled as the floor beneath him snapped open, sending him plummeting to his doom.  
"Steiner!!" Vivi called out and looked down into the trap door. A loud THUD was heard down below.  
" He was brave knight…." Quina mumbled and took off it's hat ( You know, the white chef's hat it wears) in respect.  
" Hey, I'm not dead!" Steiner called from below.  
" Are you OK?" Freya called down.  
" I'm OK, it's not as far down as it looks….." he replied "And, there's a path down here leading right, and I think this is the way we are supposed to go……"  
" Are you saying that we jump down there?" Vivi asked nervously.  
" You have to!" was the reply." It's not that far down, you can do it Master Vivi!"  
" Ok…." Vivi said and he then jumped down the trap door, with Quina and Freya a little while later.  
" Wow, we ran most of the cave length……" Freya stated.  
" Yeah….. Hey, what's that?" Vivi said as he pointed out to bright light at the end of the path.  
" It bright….. maybe yummie yummies there! I so hungry! I wasting away!" Quina moaned.  
" Yeah, we can see that….." Freya said sarcastically.   
" I go to eat munchies!" s/he yelled, and ran towards the light.  
" Quina, wait!" Vivi called and then he and the others started running after Quina.  
  
  
Zidane's group  
  
" Whew, that was close….." Zidane panted as the group sat down on a rock in the ground.  
" This place has so many traps in it….." Dagger said as she leaned back.  
" Hmph. They didn't fool me." Amarant said in his usual cold, deep tone. " I was just helping you guys get out of them."  
Zidane sighed in slight irritation and got up to take a small look ahead. A while later, he came back looking really fustrated.  
" We'll have to head back…… it's a dead end ahead…."  
" It's your fault Zidane!" Amarant suddenly blurted out. You lead us here, and probably into another trap like the arrow shooters!"  
" Excuse me! It was you who triggered off the arrow shooters in the wall! And they did fall you, you were caught well off guard!" Zidane snapped.  
" Yeah?!? Well, it was you who nearly made us all Dragon chaow, and led us to a dead end!" Amarant snapped back.  
" You guys, stop fighting!" Dagger yelled at them both and got off her rock….. and stepped on a button on the floor. In no time, the floor beneath them collapsed, and all of them fell through.  
" aarrrggghhh!!" Zidane yelled as he was falling. But they weren't falling for long. They soon landed on something kind of soft, and kind of hard.  
" Hmm, it cushioned our fall….." Zidane mumbled, raking a hand through his hair.  
" Hey! Gerrooofff!!" a voice said below him, Dagger and Amarant. They all got off, and smiled as they looked down.  
" Vivi! Steiner! Freya!"   
" Where's Quina?" Dagger asked.  
" We are chasing after it now!" Vivi panted " s/he ran over in that direction!" and pointed towards the light.  
" Hey, I gotta feeling the staff is there! Come on!" Zidane yelled as the whole group ran to the light.   
Eventually, they did reach it ( It seemed further away than it looked).  
" Whew! We've ran miles today!" Steiner complained. He wiped the sweat from his fore head.  
" Wow… the staff!" Vivi said in awe. This was the source of the light.  
The Lucifer's Staff.  
" I've got a bad feeling about that staff……" Dagger whispered to Zidane.  
" We've got to get it out of here away from Zeon, no matter what the circumstances." He whispered back.  
" We got here before him!" Freya said proudly " But it was tiring!"  
" Well, let's take the staff and get out of here….." Vivi said and he reached for it…… his fingertips a mere millimetre away from it……  
" Stop right there!!" yelled a raspy voice. Vivi pulled his hands back and retreated in his footsteps. A black cloud appeared before the group and it formed into the familiar figure of Zeon, holding Eiko in one arm, and a dagger to her throat with the other arm……….  
  
To Be Continued!! MWAHAHAHAHA!!!! I'm soooooooo evil!!   
  



	13. Words Of Deceit

Oh My God!!!……I've FINALLY updated!!!….( I've had a severe case of writers block on this story!). sheesh! This story is ssssoooooo long!(We are not even near finishing yet people!) Well, since I left it at such an evil bit last time, I'll start now!  
  
CHAPTER 13: Words Of Deceit  
  
  
"Eiko!!" Vivi yelled as he saw Zeon holding the rusted blade to her throat. This was the first time he had seen her in a long time, and now, she was held hostage in front of his face. His rage was building up inside of him as he looked at Zeon. He put his hands up in front of him, like he was ready to charge up for a magic attack. Zeon gave him a stern stare.  
" If you even attempt to try anything Ornitier, or even as much as take one step towards me, I will kill this girl!!" he sneered, holding the dagger up closer to Eiko's neck. Vivi sighed. He was totally powerless, as there was no way he could risk her life….  
"Ok, just don't hurt her!" Vivi pleaded. Zeon smiled evilly.   
" That goes for all of you too!" he bellowed to the group, then let out a small laugh. After a few minutes, he stopped, then gave a cold, evil stare to the group.  
"If you value this little damsel's life, you'd better let me take the staff!" he said.  
" We can't let you do that!" Zidane yelled " You'll release that demon back to Gaia!"  
" Don't speak ill of my master Tribal!" he stated coldly, and fired a small ball of energy at Zidane. It hit him in the chest, and sent him flying into the wall of the cave. As he hit it, a chunk of the ceiling came down and hit him on the head, knocking him out.  
" Zidane!" Dagger called out, and ran over to him.  
" As I was saying…" Zeon then suddenly paused, with a small sly smirk on his face " Actually, I'll make a deal with you…. If you let me take the staff, I'll give her back to you….. unharmed."  
" And what if we refuse?" Amarant asked.  
" Then I'll kill her….. then probably all of you as well."  
Vivi looked up at Eiko, then at the staff, then at Eiko again. He knew that if Zeon took the staff, the world would be threatened….. but at least his beloved would be safe…. Because if he didn't let him take it, he would kill her, then knowing him, he would take the staff anyway. But if they were all alive, they could all try to take Ozma and Zeon on to save the world…..  
"……take the staff….." he said "But you must promise to let Eiko go!"  
" Don't worry, I will let her go, just let me take the staff!"  
" I don't trust you!" Freya called out " You'll probably take the staff, then kill her anyway!"  
" I won't kill her!" Zeon said in an exasperated tone "You have my word!"  
Vivi sighed, not really knowing he had meant his word when he said that, but it's for the sake of Eiko's life…… it's risky, but it's worth a try…. he then gave Zeon a cold stare through narrowed eyes…  
" Fine, take the staff…. But let Eiko go first!"  
" As you wish…" he said slyly, and dropped her to the ground. Vivi was just about to run towards her when Zeon halted him with his hand.  
" What did I say about taking one step towards me?!?" he yelled. Vivi sighed and stepped back. Zeon gave a small laugh and leant over towards the staff, snatching it from the light rays. The mage then lifted it high into the air, laughing hysterically.  
" GWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! You fools! Now I have the power to release chaos and devastation, to all of Gaia!!!! HAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!" "Why, you!!!" Vivi yelled through gritted teeth and raced at Zeon, his mage staff weapon raised above his head in his hands, ready to strike him. Zeon just laughed, and fired a ball of energy at him, sending him into the wall. The others then started to approach him, but Zeon just sent them all back into the wall with an army of energy balls. Zidane then woke up and he raised his head from off the ground to see what was going on, but then Freya collided into him. As Vivi struggled to rise from the floor, Zeon raised the glowing Lucifer's Staff. The cave was then filled with a bright red light, which blinded everyone in it. A few moments later, it was gone, Zeon was gone, and Eiko was gone too. Vivi's eyes were filled with tears….  
"NNNOOOOOOO!!!!" he screamed, as he ran to the place she was lying a few moments ago, and knelt down, sobbing. The group (except Amarant) rose from the ground and walked over towards Vivi. Dagger put a hand on his shoulder.  
" Vivi…. We'll go and rescue her….. I'm sure she'll still be OK…" She whispered, trying to comfort him.  
" How the hell do you know that?!?" Vivi yelled. He then rose off of his knees, and faced Dagger with angry eyes, tears still coming out of them.  
" Did she look OK to you when he came here?!" he yelled in her face. "Well, did she?!" Dagger said nothing, but stared at him in total surprise.  
" She was unconsious! We have no idea if she was alright!! God knows what that bastard has done to her!!!" he paused for a moment to wipe a tear from his cheek… " and, how the hell can we go rescue her?!? We have no idea where he's hiding!! Why say that to me when you know it ain't true?!? You know it just hurts me!!!"  
" Hang on a moment there!" Zidane said to him in an angry tone, staring right into his eyes " How dare you speak to Dagger like that!! She only said that to make you feel better! She's trying to help you, like we all are, and you're just throwing it back in her face! If we don't know where he's hiding, we'll just find out! When we saved the world, we had no idea where Kuja was to begin with, but we got there in the end! And if you believe that she ain't OK, she really won't be! Don't be so goddamn pessimistic, for Christ's sake!!!" It was then that Vivi took a moment to realise the hurt expression on Dagger's face, and what he had really said to her. Zidane was right, they all had to stay positive and at least try to find Zeon's hiding place, and it really wouldn't help if he argued with his friends, especially if they were only trying to help him….  
" My God…" he said in a apologetic tone, and then turned to face Dagger. " Dagger, I'm so sorry…. I… I really don't know what came over me just then, I flipped my lid….. It's just that I'm so worried about Eiko, and in her condition, I should always be with her, not have some lunatic hold her hostage somewhere……. Plus, the world's now in great danger……"  
" Hey, it's OK….." Dagger said, with a small smile on her face " I knew you were only just worried….." Vivi nodded, and faced Zidane.  
" Zidane….. you're right! If we stay positive about things, then we just might be able to save the world, and get Eiko back safely!"  
" I'm glad you realised that buddy!" Zidane said enthusiastically. " Now come on you guys! Let's head back to the ship and try to locate where Zeon is!" The whole group nodded, and started to run out the cave. Vivi sighed when he was running, as he had a million questions going through his head at the moment. How will they find him? Will the world be saved? Is it to late? Has Ozma already been released? Is Eiko all right after all this? A silent tear from his eye as he slowly whispered " Eiko….. I hope will all my heart that you are still OK……"  
  
  
To Be continued……  
  
The next update will be really soon, I swear it! Even if I have to glue myself onto my desk chair, I'll do it! Next part coming up soon….. 


	14. The Race To Memoria

Whew! Again, I've taken soooooooo long to update, but this time, it ain't my fault as it was because of my school exams (School Sucks total ass!) but since they're finished now, I can work on this more, cause I want to get it finished! This is taking much longer than I expected, and yesterday, I got a brilliant idea….. for a sequel! Man, I ain't even finished part one yet! N e ways, on with the chapter!  
  
  
CHAPTER 14: The Race To Memoria  
  
  
  
Vivi sighed as he looked over the side of the Red Rose, as they were now heading for Lindblum to ask if Cid and Hilda knew what was going on with Zeon, and if they could help them find him. He could not stop thinking about how Eiko was doing, and how powerless he was to stop Zeon from taking her in the Endless Cave Of Evil. He shut his eyes tightly as he gritted his teeth and growled at himself, forcing a tear out from his left eye.  
'Eiko…..please be okay…. I'll never forgive myself if anything happened to you…..or our child…..' he thought as he slowly looked down at ship's hard, wooden floor. '…..I feel so useless….. I couldn't do anything when you were unconscious in the cave……I couldn't do anything!' he suddenly felt someone place a hand on his shoulder. He turned around, to see that it was Dagger, with a sympathetic look on her face.  
" Don't worry Vivi…. We will get Eiko back safe and sound as soon as we find out where he is hiding…." Vivi gave her a small smile, but with sadness still in his eyes.  
"It's all my fault Dagger…..If only I had stopped him on board the Airship… then he wouldn't have taken her away from me…."  
" Vivi… it's not your fault…. He's too strong for you to take on alone….."  
" But it is my fault!" he exclaimed. "He took her away to get back at me for sealing Ozma! I'm the reason she's in captivity with some psychopath! I'm the reason she and our child are in serious danger! I'm the reason that many mages lost their lives in the destruction of the Black Mage Village!"  
"Vivi, listen to me, you are not to blame for all of this." Dagger said sternly, looking into his eyes. "If you hadn't sealed Ozma, then he'd still be around now, terrorising Gaia with his evil powers. You and Zidane did it so that the people of Gaia were protected from him and so he couldn't hurt anyone else. How were you to know about all this what's happening? Trust me Vivi, it's not your fault."  
Vivi looked at Dagger with a thoughtful face. She was right, he and Zidane did do it so that Ozma couldn't use his powers to hurt the people of Gaia, and how were he to know that some evil mage follower were to take his wife and try to bring Ozma back? He sighed and gave Dagger a small smile.  
"Thanks Dagger." He said softly, and gave her a small hug.  
" It's OK." She said, returning the hug. " A good bet to where he's hiding is the Iifa Tree…. Because strange sightings have been seen there…."  
" Yeah"…..Vivi agreed " But let's hear what the Regent has to say… because he sent soldiers to scout the tree and they might have news…." Just then, Zidane came over and gave Vivi a joke death stare.  
"Hey, are you trying to take my beloved Dagger away?" he said jokingly. Vivi gave a small laugh as he let go of Dagger and she ran up to Zidane and kissed him.  
" We nearly at Lindblum yet?" she asked.  
"Yeah, just about a few minutes away." Zidane replied. He then looked at Vivi, who gave Zidane a small smile and then looked out at the sky above them.  
"Just you wait Zeon, just you wait………"  
  
  
"At last, I finally have the Lucifer's staff!" Zeon laughed as he held it high in the air. "At last, I can finally summon my master back from his prison in the other Dimension!" He then reached for a tattered scroll on a perch above him, and unrolled it carefully.  
" Hahhahaha….. these are the words to complete the spell…" Suddenly, Eiko then woke up, her hands tied behind her back.  
"Where….I'm still here?!?" she said whilst looking around. She hadn't remembered what happened after Zeon had put her to sleep.  
" Ah…. How nice to see you have woke up in time to see the release of my master……" He then advanced towards her menacingly, his eyes burning like hells hottest flame.  
"Ahh! Stay away from me!" she screamed, and struggled to get up and run, but couldn't due to her arms and legs being tied. With an evil smirk, he yanked her off the floor by her hair, and got her to her feet. He untied the rope on her feet, but held a rusty dagger at her throat.  
"You're going to walk with me up these stairs, but if you make one attempt to escape, I will not hesitate to kill you…." He hissed. Eiko then started to walk helplessly where she was instructed, with the dagger being held at the back of her throat. She tried to think of her beloved Vivi coming to rescue her, but her thoughts were kept being interrupted by the eerie noised around her, and Zeon's evil laughter from behind her. She looked up and saw that the stair case led a long way up, up to an platform with an altar. Up there, there was a gap in the ceiling, so she could see the red sky and the storm clouds swirling around the altar. She sighed and looked down, to see a boiling lake of lava below them.  
" Hahahaha….. not long now before chaos and destruction will once again be brought to Gaia……" Zeon cackled. Eiko sighed, not really hearing him, as she thought  
'You guys…..Vivi…..Hurry up…'  
  
The Red Rose had just reached Lindblum, and the group were being led up to the Royal Chambers by the palace guards. After a short walk, they reached the throne room, and found Cid and Hilda there.  
" Why, hello everyone!" greeted Hilda, as she got up with Cid to talk to the group.  
" Did you get that evil staff?" Cid questioned. Vivi just stood there in total silence.  
"…..he's got it." Zidane replied blankly. Cid sighed deeply and looked at the ceiling.  
" This presents a big problem." He said quietly.  
" I know. With that staff, he can bring Ozma back to Gaia. Uncle, is there any source telling us where he could be hiding? How about the Iifa Tree? Weird sightings have been seen there……." Dagger asked.  
" I'm afraid not, Garnet, no kind of source has given us an idea where he could be….. and the soldiers that scouted the Iifa Tree said they haven't seen anything there but changes in the weather… I'm guessing it's the place where a lot of energy is gathered…." Cid was cut off by Quina moaning about his/her live snack escaping by jumping out the castle window.  
"No! I no can get them anywhere but that place above the big tree, and we no can go there for long time!"  
"Quina, that's it!" Vivi suddenly yelled.  
" What it?" Quina asked with a very puzzled look.  
" That place above the big tree…. Memoria! It has lots of energy there! That must be where he is!"  
" Of course! Why didn't I think of that?" Zidane said whilst scratching his head. He then turned to the group.  
" Ok everyone, we are heading to the Memoria, Let's go!" He went to run out the door when Dagger grabbed his arm.  
"Wait….. what if we're wrong? What if it's not the Memoria?"  
" Then we'll keep searching!" Zidane said with a smile. " Besides, I'm pretty sure it's there now. Why, the entrance to Memoria was there! I think it's a pretty safe bet."  
" I'll send Battle Airships to Memoria when you give us a signal through the Red Rose." Cid suggested. "We will fire as soon as Eiko is safe."   
" Good idea" Freya said " We'll need all the help we can get."  
"Yeah…." Vivi said quietly " Cause this will be our hardest battle for Gaia yet."  
" Ok, let's go!!" Zidane yelled and ran out the door, followed by the rest of the group, towards the Red Rose, which took off as soon as everyone was on board. Cid and Hilda watched the ship take off from the window.  
" Vivi's right, this will be their hardest battle yet….." Cid muttered as he put one arm around Hilda shoulders and sighed.  
"Good luck everyone……" Hilda said quietly " The future of Gaia depends on you……"  
  
Next chapter will be up soon, and I mean it this time, since I've got no crappy school stuff to worry about!  
Please read and review! ^_^ 


	15. The Battle For Gaia Begins

On with the next chapter! I really want to finish this because I've left it so long!  
  
  
CHAPTER 15: The Battle For Gaia Begins  
  
  
  
The Red Rose was getting closer and closer to the Iifa Tree. The whole group was all gathered at the deck of the ship, all thinking about the battle that they will soon be fighting. None of them had spoken a word since they had left Lindblum. They all knew this would be the hardest one yet, since Zeon is the most powerful being in existence. If he has released Ozma by the time they get there, they knew the chances of them winning were very slim. But…. They all knew that if they didn't try, the world would have been destroyed without someone putting up a fight for it, so they must at least try, and even if they lost, at least they would know that in their hearts, they attempted to save their planet and the people living on it.  
Zidane and Dagger stood at the front of the ship, arms wrapped around each other, staring fearlessly at the sky in front of them. Steiner stood behind them, with his Excalibur 2 sword in his hand, thinking about even in this hard battle, he will do his best to protect the King and Queen, and his friends. Freya stood still, leaning on the front rail of the ship, thinking about this battle and the life that she had lived. Amarant stood right at the back of the ship, arms folded. He wanted everyone to think that he didn't care, but really, deep down, he felt a little scared, but will fight to the very end. Quina stood in the deck's centre, and for the first time, he/she knew that this matter was more important than food. He/She just sighed and grasped the Gastro Fork in His/Her hand tightly. Vivi was standing a few inches away from Dagger and Zidane at the very front of the ship. He was determined to do his best in this battle, even if it meant costing his life. The Mace Of Zeus in his hand glowed with magical energy, ready for the battle of his life…. To protect the Planet…… to protect everyone on it…… to protect Eiko.  
At long last, the ship reached the Iifa Tree, with was radiating an evil red energy, but no entrance to Memoria could be seen.  
" Hey, there's no portal!" Freya exclaimed.  
" No… it's there…." Zidane said " I can feel it….. it's just been covered with a spell to make it impossible to see…. But I think stronger than the average vanish spell……"  
" It's so that we would have a hard time finding his hiding location." Vivi added. " But, if it's like a Vanish spell, it might appear with a magical attack on it……"  
" You think it's OK to try that, Zidane?" Dagger asked.  
"Heck, it's worth a shot!" Zidane replied. He then turned to Vivi.  
" We don't know exactly where above the tree, so fire some weak spells in all directions so we can find it. Make sure they are weak spells, as you need your energy for the battle."  
" OK…" Vivi replied, then outstretched his arms over the ship, with his Mace Of Zeus in one hand. A magical glow covered the staff, and soon went into Vivi's hands.  
" Fire!" He yelled and fired the spell in a random direction above the tree. It didn't hit anything, and continued soaring through the sky.  
" Try again!" called Freya from the ship's side rails.  
" Fire!" he yelled and the spell shot from his hands towards another direction, but again missed.  
" Try more to the right…." Zidane said pointing to show where he meant. " I feel that the energy is stronger there."  
" Ok….Fire!" Vivi yelled again, and this time, when it hit the place Zidane mentioned, static electricity covered the fire spell, and a ball of energy appeared in the air.  
" Yes! We got it!" Dagger yelled in delight.  
" Alright! Let's go!" Vivi yelled as the ship approached the portal.  
  
  
As Eiko and Zeon continued climbing up the steps to the Evil Altar, the whole place started to shake violently.  
" This…can't be!" Zeon screeched "Someone has entered Memoria! But…. I cast a spell on it…."  
" Vivi!" Eiko yelled, as if she had a definite feeling that she knew it was Vivi. This was a mistake though, as Zeon grabbed her hair and pointed the dagger at her throat.  
" Don't you dare move!" he hissed. She stood still. She hated this, and couldn't take being a helpless prisoner anymore. With all the courage she could muster, she sank her teeth into Zeon's hand, causing him to yell out in pain and drop the dagger. Whilst he crouched over, she kicked him in the chest, sending him off the staircase. However, he spread his huge, tattered black wings and flew out the pit below above Eiko.  
" You little fool….I'll kill you now!"  
" You leave your hands off her, you evil, twisted creep!" a voice yelled from the bottom of the stairs.  
" Vivi?" Eiko said quietly as she turned around, and saw everyone, including Vivi, at the bottom of the stair case.  
" So, you managed to find me….." Zeon hissed " And you, Ornitier, you're still alive after all the damage I gave you?!?"  
" That's right, it'll takes more than the likes of you to destroy me!" Vivi sneered.  
" You'll never release Ozma! Not if we can help it!" Zidane yelled from behind Vivi  
" Tribal….." Zeon whispered in a low voice. " All right, I'll kill you all now! Come on!" He yelled as he swooped down onto the group. Zidane and Vivi looked him straight in the face fearlessly and yelled…  
"Bring it on!"  
  
To Be Continued…………….. 


	16. The Staff's Evil Effect Revealed

Here we go! We are near the final stretch! I've updated a little later than I planned, and this is because I recently got myself a job and have been to busy with that to continue writing for a while. The final battle will be stretched for four whole chapters, which will be followed by the Epilogue. So here's part one of the battle that will determine the fate of Gaia! (Special thanks to Alria who's been a faithful reviewer throughout my whole story….you RULE!!)  
  
  
CHAPTER 16: The Staff's Evil Effect Revealed  
  
  
"ATTACK!!" Zidane screamed as the evil mage began to swoop down on the group.  
" You are all fools! I'll shall destroy you all!!" Zeon yelled as he began to form an energy ball in front of him. He gave an evil cackle as he slammed it into the centre of the gang, the force sending them all to the floor. Vivi cursed under his breath as he saw the mage forming another ball of energy above them. He looked over to the staircase and saw Eiko there, trying to get the ropes off her hands by wriggling as much as she could, without falling off.  
" Freya!" Vivi called "Go help Eiko! We need her help… this mage's gonna take all of us to knock him down!" Freya nodded quickly, and dashed towards the stairs, just missing the energy ball that Zeon had thrown down on the group, knocking them back down on the floor just as they had got up.  
" You're all stupid little imbeciles…." He hissed "you really think that you're puny powers are any match against mine?!?" He then turned around and saw Freya running towards Eiko.  
"He He…" he snickered as he threw yet another ball of energy at the staircase, creating a huge gap between Freya and Eiko. Freya just laughed to herself and then leaped off the ground and high in the air. Zeon looked disgusted…. He had forgotten about the super jumping abilities of the Burmecians. He then got ready to launch another attack at her… with her in the air, it'll be harder to dodge.  
"Grr…..Shadow Flare!!" He was about to release the attack when all of a sudden, a Powerful Flare spell hit him right in the back, causing him to stagger in the air. He then turned around, only to be hit by Zidane's well placed 'Thievery' attack in the shoulder, sending him back.  
" AAHHHH!!!" He howled as he clutched his left shoulder where the physical attack had hit him, showing blood trickling down his cape. He landed down on the platform where the others were and decided now that he was wounded, he'd fight on the ground.  
"Shell!" Dagger called out as she cast the white spell on everyone around her, knowing that the magic damage they will receive will be reduced by ½. Amarant was the first to make a move at the mage, by dashing towards him and attempting to slash at Zeon's arms with his powerful claws. Zeon howled as he started to release attack after attack at Amarant, but he skilfully dodged each one, and created a huge gash in his right arm. Zeon screamed as blood was pouring out of the wound, and the group seized their chance at attacking him now he's weakened.  
"C'mon guys! Let's kill this filthy bastard!" Amarant called to his teamates. They all nodded, and leapt to attack. Zidane slashed across the evil mages face with his Ultima weapon, sending him to the ground, which was followed by brutal strikes from Quina, Steiner and Amarant, and a Flare spell from Vivi. Dagger then prepared to summon Ark, when all of a sudden, a bright light surrounded Zeon, causing everyone to squint as it was so bright. The words "FULL CURE!" were then uttered, and he then rose into the air, with his strength back, but covered in wounds, which were still bleeding pretty bad.  
" How….how….did he… do that?!?" Vivi stuttered, astonished by the fact that he used a white spell that even Dagger or Eiko didn't know.  
" You fools… do you really expect to beat me that easily?!? He hissed. He touched his cheek where Zidane had slashed him, and sure enough, there was a huge patch of blood on his palm. He growled as he felt it trickle down his face, and narrowed his red eyes.  
" Say your prayers!" He cackled "I'll send the lot of you to Hell! DEATH BLAZE!!!" He then shot a massive ball of fire at the platform, which was covered in the evil flame in seconds. The whole group howled and writhed in pain as the attack burned them with full power, which was felt even with the power of the Shell spell protecting them. When it was over, they were barely alive, the only movements that any of them made was twitches.  
"You…..son…of a.." Zidane growled as he saw Zeon laughing in front of him.  
" You… haven't beaten me yet…….." Vivi coughed as he still lied on the ground, his skin so hot it felt like it was boiling. "This is….. just the…… beginning!" Zeon laughed, and looked down at him.  
" You're wrong, Ornitier…… this is the end…..of you, of you all!" He put his foot on Vivi's head. "Any last words before I crush you?"  
" Yeah….. maybe God'll forgive you for what you've done…. Destroy the Black Mage Village with all my friends there….kidnap my dearest Eiko bearing my child, and then release an evil demon to enslave a whole world, but I most certainly won't, and even in death, I'll… we'll find a way to stop you!  
" Touching…." Zeon murmured " But now, I'll crush you all, and release my master to begin a reign of Chaos and Destruction to all of Gaia!"  
"I don't think so!" yelled a familiar voice from behind him "PHOENIX!!" The legendary fire bird rose from the sky, and showered the whole place with flames, burning the evil mage, but recovering the strength of the heroes before rising back in the air and disappearing. Zeon staggered from the attack, and fell to the ground. The group rose from up off the floor, to see Freya and Eiko standing there, smiling.  
"Rei's Wind!" Freya called as she raised her lance, letting the holy healing winds surround her allies, which soon put them all back to full strength.  
"Eiko!" Vivi called as he ran towards her, his arms opened wide. Eiko started to run towards him too, and they were eventually back in each others arms, together again after such a long time.  
" I'm so glad that you're safe….." he whispered softly, whilst hugging her as tight as he could.  
" Yeah…I'm glad to see you too….." she sobbed, tears streaming down her face and onto his chest. They eventually let go, to see Zeon rising off the floor.  
" We can save this stuff for later…." Vivi said as he looked at the evil mage "We have something to do first…"   
" Uh huh….." Eiko agreed "Like taking out the trash!!" she added.  
"Yeah!" Zidane yelled as he approached the couple.   
"We can do it!" Dagger called as she ran towards them, followed by Steiner, Amarant and Quina.  
"Urrgghhh…." Zeon groaned, leaning on the end of his staff, the evil Lucifer's Staff.  
" You…will not beat me….." The same bright glow surrounded him, recovering him from the attack. He growled and lifted the staff in the air.  
" I'll summon my master now! He'll have the honour of destroying those who sealed him in the other dimension….." he then started to fly towards the Evil Altar.  
" Oh no you don't!" Zidane yelled, and grabbed onto his legs, weighing him down.  
"Get off me, you monkey!" Zeon growled, trying to kick the Genome off, but he had a firm grip, which gave Steiner enough time to use his Shock technique on the Mage. He howled in pain, and dropped the evil staff.  
" Vivi! The staff!" Zidane called ( Authors Note: They don't know that if they touch it, they turn evil……oh god…..) Vivi nodded, and ran towards it. He could feel the evil radiating from it even at a distance….. he squinted as he stood right above it.  
" As long as I destroy this thing…. Ozma will not be able to be summoned……" he then leaned over……. And picked it up.  
'The evil is intense….' He thought as he looked at it. His thoughts were soon cut short as all of a sudden, the staff melded onto his right hand…..  
"What the?!?" he yelled, confused and frightened. Shots of evil energy and pain ran through his body, causing him to jerk uncontrollably… ..  
" Vivi!!" Zidane called out as he let go of Zeon, and approached him slowly.  
" VIVI!!!!!!" Eiko screamed, trying to run up and help her husband, but the red light was so bright, she couldn't even stare at it. Zeon laughed and looked at the group.  
" You fools! Didn't you know that only those who are truly evil can touch the Lucifer's Staff, or else they'll turn evil too?!?"  
"WHAT?!?" Eiko screamed "OH MY GOD!!! VIVI!!!"  
"ARRRGGGHHHHH!!!!" Vivi howled, his face and hands covered in blood, his bloodshot eyes filled with terror, and his hand tightly clutching the staff, unable to let go….. he screamed as two wings started to grow from his back, and claws started to grow on his hands. His loving amber eyes were now turning an evil blood red, which burned ferociously as his eyes were still fixed onto the staff. His mind was slowly being taken over by evil spirits within the staff, which now had spikes on top of it.  
'I….I've gotta….resist these demons possessing…..me…….for my friends…….for Gaia……for Eiko…….I've gotta………resist……' Vivi thought as the staff continued to transform him.   
" Eikoooooo……Get away…." He hissed before he let out one last scream, and then vanished in a flash of red light….. which went up to the Evil Altar….  
" Vivi!!" Everyone yelled, except Zeon, who was sniggering evilly.  
" Words will not reach him now….. he's come onto the dark side.. Mwahahahaha!!! Lighting struck above them all around the top of the Altar…. Which now had a tall, dark mage on top of it, with the Lucifer's Staff in his right hand….His black wings outstretched….. His eyes burning like red hot coals……  
  
Well Well!! Vivi's Evil, but can he resist the power of the staff, or will he help Zeon destroy Gaia? Read the next chapter to find out! 


	17. Friend......Or Foe?

Well, here's the next chapter! There's flashbacks in this chapter from the game and from some of my other fanfics that'll go through Vivi's mind, so don't get confused….. anyway, on with the show!  
  
  
  
  
  
CHAPTER 17: Friend….Or Foe?  
  
  
" Vivi??" Eiko sobbed, looking up at the mage standing at the top of the Evil Altar, which was once her loving husband, Vivi Ornitier. His loving amber eyes were replaced with burning crimson hate…. His tattered black wings stretched across the red sky…… his right hand clutching the Evil Lucifer's Staff tightly…. His neat Mages clothing now looked like tattered rags draped over his body…..  
Zeon looked up at the new Vivi and laughed insanely.  
" Now you can be destroyed without me even getting my hands dirty!" he sneered. The group didn't really hear him…they were really only looking up at Vivi….wondering what new challenge is ahead of them. Eiko, however, was totally devastated. She only had been reunited with him for five minutes and now, he's been possessed by an evil demon contained within the Staff.  
" Kill them." Zeon commanded as he looked up at Vivi. At those exact words, the Mage leapt from off the altar, heading towards the group at maximum speed, with two huge fireballs in his hands. At once, they all started to run, and were sent to the floor as the impact had hit the centre of the platform, causing it to crumble in places.  
" VIVI!" Eiko screamed as she saw him rise back up in the air, ready to fire another attack directly at her!  
"EIKO!" Zidane called "GET OUTTA THE WAY!!" Upon hearing this, she leapt with all her strength out of the way of the fireball attack, which left a huge black crater in the platform. Zidane ran to her side whilst Zeon and Vivi attacked the others with various spells.  
"Look, I'll take care of Vivi, you all try to destroy Zeon!" Zidane called over the crashes and blows in the background. More tears were beginning to form in Eiko's eyes.  
"But…..Vivi…" she sniffled softly.  
" I won't kill him…… I know there's still a part of our friend Vivi Ornitier in there…… I just need him to remember his true self to overcome the demon inside his body. I'm not even gonna fight him…… just to try and get him to remember he's one of us." He reassured.  
"But…. You could get killed…"  
"Well, If that should happen, at least I tried to bring him back!" Zidane said with a small smile. Eiko nodded, and gave a small smile back.  
"Just…. Do your best not to hurt him, OK….and watch yourself too……" she said as she rose from off the ground, and ran towards the heat of the battle, yelling "Good Luck!" to Zidane. He ran to the battle scene too, and used his 'Thievery' attack at Vivi, but not with much force. This certainly got his attention, and turned around, narrowing his eyes at the Genome. He rose his fists, and launched a fireball at him, which Zidane quickly avoided by jumping backwards. However, he didn't count on a second attack, which sent him flying as it hit him. Zidane struggled to rise to his feet, as his skin was burning, and blood was seeping through several cuts on his body. Vivi seized this chance and lobbed another ball of fire at him, which hit the Genome with full force, was sent flying into a bunch of rocks on the platform, head first. Zidane slowly rose his head, only to see the whole area he was in was covered in smoke from the battle. He took this opportunity to gulp down an X-Potion, to recover his strength for a while. He touched the top of his head, and then looked at his hand, only to see the fingers covered in blood. He growled to himself as he felt more of his blood slowly trickle down his neck, and onto his tattered shirt. He had to do this quickly, because at the rate Vivi's going, he could kill Zidane in a matter of seconds. He looked to see a pair of dark red eyes slowly approaching him through the smoke. Zidane then stood up, and looked straight into the mage's evil glare.  
" Vivi! You don't want to do this! Don't you realise that you're being controlled?" he yelled. The mage continues to walk slowly up to him, in a state of silence, as if he hadn't heard him.  
" It's me, Zidane! I'm your friend!" the mage ignored this, rose his hands, and hissed…..  
"Flare." The powerful spell left Vivi's palms, and struck Zidane with full force in the chest, knocking him straight back to the ground, and howling in agony. As soon as the attack was over, Vivi approached Zidane, and lifted him up off the floor by the neck with one hand, his claws digging into his target's neck, in an attempt to pierce right through the skin. Vivi looked up into the defenceless Genome's eyes, which were firmly closed, and his eyelids were painted with a thick coat of blood, which had poured down from the deep gash across his forehead.  
"I'm….your….friend…..Vivi…." Zidane choked as he opened one of his eyes slowly at the mage. Vivi's eyes widened at this statement, as he suddenly had a past memory rush through his brain….  
  
  
(Flashback: Ten years ago….. at the Dali Village….. scene from the game.)  
(Author's Note: Since it's been a while since I've seen these early scenes in FF9, I really don't remember what the characters exactly said in these scenes….so, I'll make it up…OK?^_^)  
  
Vivi stood at the windmill in Dali Village, looking up at it in wonder. He recalled his Grandfather Quan taking him to quite a few places with windmills, so he grew to love them. He saw a few of the village kids staring at him funnily, and muttering things under their breath. He had a hunch they were talking about him….. and he sighed sadly.  
"Vivi….. whatcha thinking about?" Zidane asked as he approached the small mage. Vivi saw him and happiness shone in his eyes as he saw his friend.  
" J….Just thinking about windmills… they're great, aren't they?" he said in awe as he went back to looking at it. Zidane looked up as well and nodded in agreement, and joined him by leaning on the wall next to the windmill. Zidane still noticed that his little buddy was still looking sad, so he turned to him, and smiled.  
" What's up Vivi? You're very quiet….." A big smirk suddenly formed on his face.  
"You sad cause you don't have a girlfriend?" Vivi's cheeks turned a bright red, and shook his head.  
"N..…no! It's not that! I.... I've never really thought of things….l…. like that!" he stammered nervously. Zidane laughed loudly.  
"Just kidding Vivi!" he said with a grin. " But know this…. You ever get any girl trouble…… you come to me, Ok?" Vivi nodded, and smiled.  
"O…Okay. Thank you, Zidane."  
" No problem! I'm your friend, remember? That's what they're for….. to help each other out…." And they both continued to stare out at the sky above the windmill……..  
  
  
"ARRGGGHHH!!" Vivi screamed as he chucked Zidane onto the ground, and got ready to fire another spell at him. Zidane, barely conscious now and clutching his bleeding neck, reached into his pouch and quickly slurped down another X-Potion, re vitalising him and quickly rolled out of the way of the attack, which left a massive crater in a rock wall behind him. The mage screamed as he swung the Lucifer's Staff at Zidane in an attempt to crush his skull, but he quickly dodged it, and this time, the impact of the attack knocked the wall down. Vivi turned around and stared at Zidane in the eye evilly. Zidane narrowed his eyes at him and tried again to get him to remember who he truly is…..  
" We are all here to help each other Vivi! You're one of us, and we helped save the world…. Together!"  
Again, Vivi's eyes widened……  
  
  
(Flashback: Ten Years ago: In the Dali Underground Walkway)  
  
  
Zidane heard a soft crying coming from a box leaning against a few star marked barrels and some rusty machine parts. He used his dagger to pry it open, and Vivi fell out of it and onto the floor.  
"Vivi! Are you Ok?" Dagger asked, helping him up off his feet.  
"Y…yeah….I'm OK…." Vivi stammered nervously "I hate the d…dark…."  
" Did those bastards that lead you down here do this?!?" Zidane hissed through gritted teeth.  
"Y…yeah…the men took me down here, then shoved me in this box….." he sniffed and rubbed his watery eyes. Zidane kneeled down and he placed one hand on his back.  
"Don't worry, little buddy…..We're here for you….let's go find those bastards and ask what the hell's goin' on…OK?" Vivi nodded and he turned to look at Zidane and smiled, although underneath his shadowed face it was hard to tell, but this gesture could be seen in his round, amber eyes.  
"T….Thanks Zidane…. You're a real friend……"  
  
  
"Grrrr……grrrrRRRRRR!!!" Vivi growled as he clutched his head with one hand.   
"……Vivi?" Zidane said, approaching him slowly, and cautiously. The mage stared at him full in the face, and then struck him down with another fireball.  
"Uhh…….damn it….." Zidane groaned, holding his chest, his body shaking uncontrollably. He turned his head and saw everyone else, fighting Zeon with all their might. They need his help…. They need Vivi's help too….too beat an enemy as powerful as him….. and now, he's fighting one of his own friends! The fate of Gaia rests on this battle, and it'll take everyone's help to do it….. so he knew that if this didn't stop soon, the world will be destroyed….. he staggered as he rose off the floor, coughing up blood. He saw Vivi approaching him again, the staff in his hand glowing as red as his eyes…..  
" Listen…..we need your help here Vivi! We've gotta work together….. or the whole of Gaia will be destroyed! Vivi, you've gotta snap out of it! We're all here to help each other!" Vivi suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes slowly widening again….  
  
  
(Flashback: Seven years ago, this is from my very first fic, Feelings Admitted. They're by the river outside Alexandria Castle.)  
  
"Hi Zidane….." He said in a sad tone. It was then that Zidane definitely knew that something was wrong. He sat right next to the little mage and said…  
"What's bothering you Vivi?"  
"It's nothing…" He mumbled. Another tear fell from his eye.  
"Come on! I know you better than that! What's wrong buddy?" Zidane asked again. "Is it girl trouble?" He joked. Vivi then turned away from the water, looked up at Zidane, and said "….Yes".  
"Uh oh." Zidane thought. That was only meant to be a joke! Vivi never normally thinks about girls and what they think of him! This must be serious!  
"So….who's the lucky lady you're in love with?" Zidane asked in a friendly tone. Vivi remained silent.   
"Come on, you can trust me. I wouldn't tell anyone." Zidane reassured him.  
"…...E….Eiko…."Vivi stammered.  
"……Then why don't you tell her?" Zidane asked.  
"I….I'm scared….about how she's going to retaliate. I..I mean, she's a human, and I'm a black mage! Why would she ever fall for a black mage?"  
"Because you are not like other black mages Vivi." Zidane replied.  
"W..…W…...What do you mean?" Vivi asked.  
"What I just said." Zidane replied "Other Black mages are not as kind hearted and thoughtful as you are Vivi, and that's what girls love about a man, not just his appearance."  
"S…So you're saying that it's not how I look that matters, it's what's on the inside that really counts?" Vivi asked, sounding a bit more cheerful.  
"Exactly!" Zidane said with a smile.  
"B….But I thought she liked you…."  
"Well, she has been acting different lately, she's not as flirty around me like she used to be…I think she's finally realised I'm too old for her, add to the fact that I love Dagger…."  
Vivi's eyes brightened, and he hugged Zidane. He had always thought of Zidane as an elder brother, as always helped him through hard times, such as now.  
"T…..Thanks! Now, I feel I have enough courage to go and tell her my true feelings!" Vivi said as he stood upright.  
"Go for it dude!" Zidane said supportively as he watched Vivi run to the castle, smiling.  
  
  
Vivi's whole body had started shaking. His eyes were wide with fear, and he clutched his head with both hands, although still holding the evil staff in his right hand. Zidane didn't want to make the same mistake as before, so he carried on.  
" Also, what about Eiko? If you really don't want to help us for my benefit, then do it for your wife's! She loves you with all her heart, and you loved her back! She wants to be with you, Vivi……" Vivi then started to jerk, and then fell over, with him kneeling on all fours……  
  
  
Flashback: Several months ago: On the Pinnacle Rocks. This quote is from my fic Our Love Will Never Die.)  
  
"I still don't think Zidane forgave us for that….." Eiko giggled, as she remembered a flashback with what happened as they spied on Zidane and Dagger making out there six years ago.  
"I'm sure he did…..Zidane has always treated me like a brother, and he helped me get through the worst times….." Vivi looked down at the grass sadly as he remembered all the pain he went through in the past. He then looked back up at Eiko with a big smile spread across his face.  
"He even gave me advice on how to prepare for this moment…" Vivi said reaching into his jacket pocket.  
"For what…." Eiko was cut off by shock as Vivi slowly bent down on one knee, and pulled the thing out of his pocket. It was a small, grey ring box. He slowly opened it, revealing a gorgeous 24 carrot gold diamond ring……..  
"Eiko Carol, I have loved you since I first met you. I will love you now and forever. You are the most precious thing in my life. Please, will you marry me, my sweet angel?"  
Eiko shed a few tears of happiness before answering "….Yes!"  
Vivi was stunned. He didn't know what to say. He shed a tear of joy as he slowly placed the ring on her finger. He then took Eiko into his arms once again, before giving her the most passionate kiss they had ever experienced……..  
  
  
"Urrggghhhhh…uurrgghhh……" Vivi groaned, his body still shaking. Zidane slowly took a step towards him, and was ready to dodge if Vivi had launched another attack.  
" You were both made for each other! You and Eiko couldn't stand to be apart! You both love each other so much……" he took another brave but cautious step towards him.  
" Vivi…. You've gotta remember who you truly are! You're Vivi Ornitier….. the Black Mage hero….. the husband of Eiko Carol…and….my best friend……." Vivi's breathing started to become heavier at those words, and looked up at the bleeding Genome…..  
"….Vivi…. do you remember…. Who you are?" Vivi's eye's suddenly narrowed again, and Zidane's face filled with terror….  
" Rrr…rrrrAAARRGGHHH!!" He growled, as he unleashed another attack, which hit the Genome again, and sent him to the ground. Vivi lowered the top of the staff at Zidane's head, then held it high above his head, ready to bring down onto his skull……..  
" Vivi…..please…..no…." Zidane groaned, too weak to move from where he was. The mage took no notice….. he spread his wings to their full capacity, and was ready to bring down the end of the staff onto his victim…..   
"Vivi……STOP!" A innocent voice yelled. He hissed as he turned around, but then, his red eyes widened in shock, as he saw Eiko standing behind him.  
" Vivi… please…. Try and remember your true self……" she pleaded, her eyes filled with tears…..  
Vivi suddenly started to take a few steps back….. as his head filled with memories of him and Eiko in the past… this was all too much to take, so he suddenly screamed, and flew up to the Evil Altar.  
" Vivi!" Eiko screamed as she watched him fly up there.  
"Vivi….. wait up!" Zidane choked. Eiko looked down at him and cast Curaga and Esuna a few times, to stop his wounds bleeding and re vitalise him again.  
" Come on! We need all the help we can get! Let's get Vivi!" Zidane exclaimed. Eiko nodded, and ran up the staircase, leaping over the gap.  
As they approached the top, they looked down to see everyone still fighting, but they do need help. They looked up, to see Vivi backing away from Zidane and Eiko….. his eyes filled with tears and fear.  
" Take a good look at us, Vivi! Who are we?!?" Zidane yelled. Vivi's mind filled with his positive thoughts of his friends and Eiko, and was starting to drive away the evil spirits possessing his mind……  
"………..Zid…..Zidane…Tribal……and E……Eiko Ornitier…." He stuttered…….  
"….Yes!" Eiko shouted with glee. Then all of a sudden, a bright white light surrounded the Black Mage, covering him completely….. his eyes widened as they shone a bright white….. Eiko and Zidane shielded their eyes before starting to retreat down the staircase, and watching him from the bottom. Everyone had stopped fighting, to watch, even Zeon. The white glow soon spread around the whole of Memoria, and covered all of Vivi's allies, completely healing them and recovering their strength. He started to scream as the light started to reverse the transformation of the evil staff, back to his normal self. When it was over, and all the light had faded, Vivi was back to normal, still holding the staff….. although it had no side effects on him…. He growled to himself as he threw the staff up high in the air, then raised his hands…..and yelled…..  
"….FLARAGA!!!" and the huge spell left his palms and struck the staff, shattering it into tiny pieces, which disintegrated in the air. The whole group had huge smiles on their faces as the staff that could bring back the evil demon called Ozma back to Gaia…… was destroyed. He soon ran down the staircase to re unite with the others, who all ran to him, and hugged him.  
" You did it!" Freya exclaimed as she hugged the Mage.  
" Ozma will not be able to be revived…." Steiner stated, as he turned around , too see Zeon, shaking uncontrollably with pure hatred and rage…… he then screamed and his body glowed a bright red aura…..  
"ARRGGGHHHH!!! YOU'VE RUINED MY PLANS!!!" he roared as the blinding red glow suddenly covered his whole body….. ..  
" What the hell?" Zidane yelled over a sinister, evil roar and when it was gone, there stood Zeon….in Trance….. ready for the final fight………  
  
  
Woah! That chapter was looooooooong! Well, read and review please, and find out if they will beat Zeon in Trance in the next chapter of……. The Mage Of Eternal Darkness! 


	18. The Final Battle Part 1

Well, here's the next chapter! I'm working on this and the Misadventures Of Vivi And Eiko at the moment, so that's why this chapter was a little later than I planned. I've also been playing FF10 on my brand new Playstation 2, so…… you can see why it's bit late! Anyway, on with the chapter!  
  
  
  
Chapter 18: The Final Battle Part 1  
  
  
The whole group looked on at Zeon, who had now Tranced after Vivi had wrecked his plan to bring back his master Ozma by destroying the Lucifer's Staff. His big black wings were much bigger and more tattered, his fingers had now been replaced with long, black claws, his eyes let out a bright red, evil aura around them, and he now had golden, tattered robes draped over his body. His staff that he was holding in his right hand was radiating with pure magical energy, ready to attack his enemies and hopefully, accomplish his revenge for his master and destroy them.  
" This does not look good…." Zidane whispered to Vivi, who had his eyes fixed on the evil mage.  
" I know, but we still must try, Zidane." Vivi said whilst raising the Mace Of Zeus in the air with his right hand "Cause if we don't……"  
" The whole world will perish." Eiko finished. " But, I'm not gonna let that happen! C'mon guys! Lets give him our best shot!" She then raised her Tiger Racket Weapon, and charged it with white magic in her hands. The word " Holy!" were yelled into the atmosphere, and the powerful white spell was thrown at Zeon, hitting him directly in the chest. White smoke covered the mage completely, and the whole group seized this chance and leapt into attack. Ziadne used his Thievery attack at the mage, whilst Steiner used his Shock technique, Amarant used his Demi Shock, and Freya used a new attack she had mastered, called Dragon's Rage. Vivi ended the wave of attacks with his newly learnt spell, Flaraga, which covered everywhere in a murky black fog. When it had finally settled, the evil mage was still standing there, not even grazed.  
" How?!?" Eiko screeched "There was NO way anyone could've survived that!"  
"This…… is impossible!" Dagger yelled, just as disbelieved as everyone else. Zeon, said nothing. He suddenly rose into the air, his whole body glowing a red light. He outstretched his arms, and a huge ball of evil energy had begun formed in his hands. The group looked on, preparing for the worst……  
" Evil Inferno." He hissed quietly, whilst he let go of the energy ball in his hands, sending it flying towards the helpless heroes. The evil flames spread across the whole chamber like wildfire, burning everything in it's path. The whole group was writhing in agony, their screams echoing throughout the blazing chamber.   
"…Vi..vi!" Eiko called throughout the chaos, trying to find her husband, despite not being able to rise off the floor. Vivi turned around, to see Eiko, pinned down to the floor in pain. Not being able to stand seeing her in any kind of pain, he gathered all the strength in his body to rise off the floor, and leapt towards his beloved Eiko. He made it, and he shielded her with his own body, trying to save her as best as he could from the evil attack by taking the punishment himself. Vivi gritted his teeth, knowing that he wouldn't be able to take much more. Eiko wrapped her arms around him, and they both cried out in pain together. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the attack was over, leaving everywhere covered in black ash. The group were barely alive, just hanging on to their lives by a little finger. Zeon smirked as he looked down at the helpless insects lying on the ground, unable to move. Just one more Evil Inferno could kill them all off for sure. The group looked up as he raised his hands again, and slumped back down to the floor again, knowing that this is truly the end. Zidane and Dagger were holding each other as tightly as they could. Amarant just lied there, perfectly still, preparing to be finished. Freya closed her eyes as tightly as she could, worrying what will happen to Gaia now. Quina felt disappointed knowing that s/he didn't get the chance to try every single food, and now, s/he never will. Steiner was convinced that he didn't protect his friends and the people on the planet as best as he could've done, and was now fearing what will happen to Beatrix and everyone else back home. Eiko and Vivi held onto each other, looking in one another's eyes.  
"What…..what's taking him…… so long?" Eiko sniffed, her eyes filled with tears.  
"He probably knows…… that we can't…… do anything now…… so he wants to…… prolong our…… suffering." Vivi choked, hugging her as tightly as he could.  
"Eiko…… I love you……" he looked down at her slightly swollen belly " and our baby…… more than life itself." Tears began to stream down his face too.  
" Vivi, you're the best man any woman could've ever married….. I love you so much……" she whispered, and they slowly leaned towards each other, for one, final kiss. Zeon looked down, and thought they had sat there in wretched pain long enough. It was time to dispose of these annoying pests. He got ready to launch the energy ball, when all of a sudden, a huge pain shot through his back, sending him to the ground, even in Trance. Vivi looked up, to see the Hilda Garde 6 in the red sky above them, surrounded by battle ships. Vivi wondered how they still knew when to come even without the signal from their ship, but even so, this was the perfect moment to arrive, so he didn't want to argue with that. Zeon hissed and he looked up at the sky, noticing the ships surrounding him. Blinded by rage, he flew up towards the sky, to try and get rid of them. This gave Eiko and Dagger a chance to cast Curaga on everyone, bringing the group back up to their full strength. They all looked on at the raging battle in the sky.  
" We've gotta help them!" Zidane called to everyone.   
"Just one thing…… how the hell are we supposed to get up there?" Amarant asked " We can't even reach them." Zidane thought for a moment, and gave a slight nod in agreement. True, they can't reach up there…… a series of loud explosions alerted everyone to gaze at the sky again, and they noticed that several of the battleships had been blown to smithereens. They knew the ships didn't stand a chance against a powerful being like Zeon in Trance…… eventually, all except the Hilda Garde 6 were destroyed., which flew up higher to try and avoid Zeon's almighty attacks. His mind suddenly snapped back at his targets, which were now all healed and had re grouped. He growled, as he realised that the ships were a mere distraction. He swooped back down at top speed, ready to attack with a Flaraga spell that was charging up in his palms. He shot it directly at Zidane, which caught him completely off guard, and sent him flying head first into a big rock poking out from the ground. Of course, he was knocked out cold. Dagger immediately ran to his side, leaving the others to face the demon mage.  
" One down master……" he hissed, then turned to face Vivi " And one more to go……" he sent huge energy balls flying towards Vivi one after the other, but he was skilfully dodging each one. Vivi quickly outstretched his arms and shot off a quick Flare Spell at the mage, hitting him right on, but he flew right through it and struck Vivi down with the staff in his hand, sending him to the ground. He was about to strike Vivi again, but he fell to his knees as he felt a Holy spell hit his back. He slowly turned around, and noticed Eiko standing there, staring right at him with narrowed eyes. He too, narrowed his eyes, and outstretched his arms……  
"Shadow Flare!" He called, and shot the attack off at her, her eyes wide with fear……  
" Eiko!" Freya called out from a distance, too far away to try and do something……  
" EIKO! NO!!" Vivi yelled and jumped right in the way of the attack, blocking it from reaching Eiko completely, his eyes wide from the spell's impact on his chest. Blood formed at his mouth, and from a gash right across his chest, drenching his Black Mage outfit. He slowly fell to the ground, looking completely lifeless. Zeon smirked as he saw Eiko's eyes fill with tears as she ran to his side……  
" Vivi! VIVI! Please….. please tell me you're still here…… you can't leave me…… not now….." she sobbed, unable to stop a continuous flow of tears from her eyes.  
" Can't you see?" Zeon sneered " I've avenged my master by destroying those who sealed him in the other dimension. I win! Now, I'm going to destroy all of Gaia, after I've dealt with all of you!" He then turned his head towards the sky, and laughed evilly. This gave Steiner, Quina, Amarant and Freya to attack the mage. He turned to face them, and continued fighting. Eiko looked down at Vivi, who had still not moved……  
" Vivi…… please don't leave me…… I can't live without you……" she sobbed as she gripped his blue coat's collar tightly. "I……I love you so much……" one of her tears rolled down her cheek, and onto his chest. All of a sudden, Zeon yanked Eiko back by her hair, and pulled her towards him……  
" You're now going to perish……" he hissed, and threw her down to the floor. He attempted to strike her with his staff, but she just blocked it with the end of her Tiger Racket. She turned around to see if any help was possible, but everyone had been knocked out cold by one of his attacks, and she was the only one left. He threw the end of the staff down to her head, but she rolled to the right and dodged it, leaving a hole in the ground. He suddenly struck her across the face, sending her to the ground. He pointed the spike at the end of the staff's handle towards her neck, trapping her.  
" You're the only bothersome pest left now…… any last words?" he cackled. Eiko narrowed her eyes to let the last of her tears out……  
" Yeah…… I love my friends so much, and my parents in Lindblum, and especially my Husband, Vivi…… and I hope that one day, you'll die and rot in Hell!" She spat. He growled, and got ready to lower the spike onto her neck, when a bright light from behind him made him turn around. It turned out this bright light was coming from Vivi, from the wet patch of Eiko's tears on his chest. His body suddenly rose from off the floor, and the light completely covered him, making Zeon and Eiko squint from the brightness. When it eventually faded away, there stood Vivi, in Trance, gripping his Mace Of Zeus tightly in his hand.  
" You DARE hurt her, you evil creep!" he yelled, and fired a ball of energy right at his chest, sending him sprawling onto the ground. Eiko rose from off the floor, and ran towards her husband, giving him a warm, loving hug.  
" I thought…… you'd gone for sure……" she whispered lightly. Vivi laughed and shook his head.  
" No way…… you won't get rid of me that easily!" he joked, and gave her a passionate kiss, which then bathed Eiko in the same white light, which had Zeon shielding his eyes…… when it faded, Eiko was in Trance too…… in Vivi's arms. They gave each other one last peck on the cheek, and turned to face Zeon, who had risen off the floor, and was clutching his chest where Vivi had hit him with his energy ball.  
" Let's have our revenge now……" Vivi hissed at the evil mage.  
" Yeah……" Eiko agreed " Revenge for threatening Gaia, and for separating us!" They got ready in an attacking stance.   
" You really think Trance will help you to defeat me?!?" Zeon sneered "Hah! You're no match against me! I'll send you both to Hell!" he too, got ready in an attacking stance, all of them ready to start the final fight that will determine the fate of Planet Gaia……  
  
  
To Be Continued……  
  
2 more chapters to go, Final Battle Part 2 and the Epilogue. I'll get them up and the next Misadventure Of Vivi and Eiko up shortly, but now, I'm off to play FF10! Bye (Oh, and please read and review!) ^_^ 


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